A lesbian sheriff is trying to become governor in the deeply right-wing state of Texas.
Guadalupe “Lupe” Valdez, a four-term sheriff, will be running as a Democrat in the primaries this year, and is expected to win.
Valdez is part of a wave of LGBT candidates, with 35 out people expected to run for public office in Texas this year, according to OutSmart.
That figure – which has been seen as part of a backlash against President Donald Trump’s regressive policies – is around twice as many as the current record of LGBT candidate in an election cycle.
The total includes Valdez’s Democratic rival for Governor, Jeffrey Payne, a former International Mr Leather who owns the famous Dallas gay leather fetish bar The Eagle.
In response to Valdez’s announcement, Payne said: “The fact that in the state of Texas, a gay man and a lesbian can seek the highest office in the state is amazing, and shows how far we have come as a society.
“This is a proud moment in Texas history, as far as I see it.”
Defeating anti-gay Republican incumbent Greg Abbott will be another matter for Valdez – but it’s a worthy cause, considering Abbott’s anti-gay history.
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