Joseph Biden has obtained the official support from a leading transgender rights group, which has endorsed him in his bid to unseat President Trump from the White House.
The National Center for Transgender Equality Action Fund signaled on Tuesday its support for Biden in an announcement first reported by The Advocate.
“Joe Biden is the advocate and president we need at this consequential moment,” Mara Keisling, executive director of the National Center for Transgender Equality Action Fund, said in a statement.
“He has the temperament, the experience and wisdom to lead our country,” Keisling added. “Throughout his career in public service, work as a private citizen through the Biden Foundation, and now his campaign to lead our nation, Biden has demonstrated his commitment to transgender people and the LGBTQ community.”
It’s the first presidential endorsement decision from the National Center for Transgender Equality Action Fund, which was established in 2017 as a political arm for the 501(c)(3) transgender policy group known similarly as the National Center for Transgender Equality.
Reggie Greer, LGBTQ+ vote director for Biden for President, said in a statement the campaign is “deeply honored” to have the support from the National Center for Transgender Equality Action Fund.
“NCTE Action Fund has done trailblazing work to change the landscape of America, educate and lobby elected leaders, and empower and mobilize transgender people to ensure their voices are heard at the ballot box,” Greer said. “That record, and network to countless voters on the ground, is especially crucial in this time of uncertainty and upheaval.”
Biden, who built a significant record on LGBTQ rights as vice president, has also made himself known as an ally to the transgender community. The former vice president has repeatedly said transgender rights are “the civil rights issue of our time.”
In contrast, the Trump administration has rolled back protections for transgender people in employment, health care and education in addition to enacting a ban barring transgender people from the U.S. military.
“The Trump administration is really the discrimination administration,” Keisling said. “President Trump has attacked transgender health care, put transgender students unnecessarily at risk and led a consistent and unrelenting effort to rollback protections for LGBTQ Americans. Joe Biden is the clear choice for president of the United States, and the NCTE Action Fund is proud to endorse him.”
Endorsements for Biden continue to pile up, but one LGBTQ organization that has yet to declared its official support is the Human Rights Campaign. The nation’s leading LGBTQ group stayed out the Democratic primary and has yet to Biden, even though he’s now the presumptive Democratic nominee.
The Washington Blade has repeatedly sought an update from HRC on the endorsement decision, but no receive no information.
Story courtesy of the Washington Blade.