Democrat Sarah McBride of Delaware to become first openly transgender person to serve in Congress
DOVER, Del. (AP) — Delaware state Sen. Sarah McBride has been elected to the U.S. House and will become the first openly transgender person to serve in Congress.
McBride easily defeated Republican John Whalen IIII on Tuesday in the race for Delaware’s lone House seat. Whalen is a retired construction company owner and former state trooper who ran a shoestring campaign in his first bid for public office.
McBride, meanwhile, has established a national profile as an LGBTQ activist and raised more than $3 million in campaign contributions from around the country. She achieved national recognition at the 2016 Democratic National Convention as the first openly transgender person to address a major party convention in the United States.
After scoring an easy Democrat primary win in September, McBride said she was not running for Congress to make history, but instead “to make historic progress for Delawareans.”