The Log Cabin Republicans came out in full force defense of City Council Post 2 At-Large candidate Mary Norwood after the Democratic Party of Georgia took out ads accusing the former council member and mayoral candidate of, well, perhaps being a Republican — a similar tactic, and ad, used against her mayoral run in 2009.
In a tough battle for the City Council against incumbent, and Democrat, Aaron Watson, the state Democratic Party felt there was enough of a threat to put out an ad and remind people that Norwood just might be a Republican. Of course, it should be pointed out that the City Council races are non-partisan. The election is Nov. 5.
Atlanta City Councilmember Aaron Watson is endorsed by staunch LGBT advocate U.S. Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.) and also the gay political group the Georgia Stonewall Democrats in his re-election bid in which he's being challenged by Mary Norwood.
Four years ago, Norwood was on the cusp of beating Mayor Kasim Reed to become the city's top leader, but lost by slightly more than 700 votes. She did win the heavily gay District 6, in part because she was a full supporter of marriage equality while, at the time, Reed only supported civil unions. Reed now supports full marriage equality.
Two openly gay candidates are among the three vying for incumbent Natalyn Archibong's District 5 seat, a position she has held since first elected in 2001. A fourth candidate, Jon Jones, who is also gay, announced he was dropping out of the race this week and is now backing Archibong. Other candidates are Matt Rinker and Christian Enterkin, who are openly gay; and John Paul Michalik. All are first-time candidates.
Alex Wan is seeking his second term on the Atlanta City Council and faces competition from two LGBT friendly straight candidates. As part of our election guide coverage, we asked each extensive questions related to LGBT communities and the city. Here are their responses. While the election is non-partisan, all candidates were asked for their party affiliation to provide more information to readers.
District 6 includes: Ansley Park, Atkins Park, Brookwood Hills (effective Jan. 1), Candler Park, Druid Hills, Lindridge/Martin Manor, Midtown, Morningside/Lenox Park, Piedmont Heights, Sherwood Forest, Virginia-Highland.
Running on the platform of that he touts as direct democracy, Jon Jones said he is vying for the Atlanta City Council District 5 seat as a way to give constituents a direct role in what legislation is passed that directly impacts their lives.
Jones would also be the first openly gay black man elected to the city council. Alex Wan, seeking his second term as the District 6 representative, was the first openly gay man elected to the council as well as the first Asian American. Lesbians have served on the council, including Cathy Woolard, who was president of the council, and Anne Fauver, who also represented District 6.
It was a great Election Day for LGBT equality across the nation, but in the red state of Georgia there is still much work to be done to move forward.
Lesbian candidates ruled the night in Georgia. State Rep. Simone Bell (D-Atlanta) easily coasted to victory Nov. 6 by defeating Republican challenger Earl Cooper to retain her District 58 seat.
State Rep. Karla Drenner (D-Avondale Estates) and state Rep. Keisha Waites (D-Atlanta), both openly gay, return to the House after having no challengers in the general election. Drenner represents District 85 and will serve her seventh term in the legislature. Waites represents District 60 and will serve her first full term after winning a special election in February.
Even before news that President Barack Obama claimed a second term in the White House late last night, Republicans and conservatives had already begun searching for someone, or something, to blame for their candidate's defeat.
With Obama's victory, Democrats have won four of the last six presidential elections going back to 1992.
Early on election night, conservative Fox News pundit Bill O'Reilly blamed the eventual loss on Hurricane Sandy, suggesting the storm which ravaged the northeast just a week ago took all of the momentum out of the hands of former Mass. Gov. Mitt Romney.
Republican Meghan McCain, whose father lost to President Barack Obama four years ago, chatted with Anderson Cooper on his live TV show today and praised both legalizing marijuana and the passage of marriage equality in Maryland and Maine.
"If I want to smoke weed responsibly, it's nobody's business," McCain tells Cooper.
She also was pleased with marriage equality being passed in Maryland and Maine, calling it a "silver lining" of last night's election in which President Obama defeated Republican Gov. Mitt Romney.
Tuesday’s election makes Tammy Baldwin the first openly gay person to serve in the U.S. Senate and brings the tally of LGBT members of the U.S. House to at least five.
"People ... see our country and our states moving toward full equality in many respects," Baldwin told CNN the morning after the election. "When you have legislative bodies that look more like America, that happens."
Baldwin is also the first woman to represent Wisconsin in the U.S. Senate.
Tonight's election means there will be three openly lesbian members of the Georgia General Assembly. State Rep. Simone Bell (D-Atlanta) easily won her reelection bid against Republican Earl Cooper, while Reps. Karla Drenner and Keisha Waites were unopposed on today's ballot.
With percent 91.67 percent reporting, Bell had 87.19 percent of the House District 58 vote, according to unofficial results from the Fulton County election office. She became the first openly lesbian African-American state lawmaker in the nation when she won a special election in 2009, and won a tough primary in June when she faced off against fellow incumbent Democrat Rep. Ralph Long thanks to GOP-led redistricting.
But tonight's election likely means the General Assembly will include no openly gay men when it convenes in January. In Athens, Tim Riley, a Democrat, lost his bid for State Senate District 47 to Republican Rep. Frank Ginn. With three out of four counties in the district reporting, Riley had 34.54 percent of the vote, compared to 65.46 percent for Ginn, according to unofficial results from the Georgia Secretary of State.
Projected victories in Ohio, Iowa and Wisconsin secure second term for Obama