For the first time in U.S. history, two openly gay major party candidates are poised to square off in a general election showdown for a House seat.
Democrat Robert Zimmerman emerged victorious in his heated primary race last month to face off against Republican George Santos for New York’s 3rd Congressional District, guaranteeing that the district will have an openly gay representative in Congress and marking the first time two LGBT candidates are opposing each other in a general election.
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“It was going to happen sooner or later,” Donald Haider-Markel, a political science professor, told NBC. “The question was always finding an LGBTQ Republican who can get support in a primary.”
Santos ran unopposed for the party nod and is hoping to flip a district that has been comfortably locked down by Democrats since the retirement of former Rep. Peter King in 2013. His campaign has focused on bread-and-butter issues such as unbridled inflation.
The Democratic primary race for the seat was subject to interference from heavyweight Democrats in the region. Outgoing Rep. Tom Suozzi, who vacated the seat to mount an unsuccessful primary challenge against New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, threw his weight behind 28-year-old Josh Lafazan.
Meanwhile, Hillary Clinton and neighboring Rep. Grace Meng backed Zimmerman, who managed to eke out a win in the August contest.
Throughout the campaign, both candidates have occasionally discussed their experiences being gay.
“Growing up as a closeted gay kid on Long Island, I dreamed of a world where I wasn’t any less than my peers. In 2015 that became a reality. #SCOTUS has vowed to overturn rulings that now protect contraception, same-sex relationships, and same-sex marriage,” Zimmerman tweeted after the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision.
“I was trashed via inbox by #MAGA people telling me they HATE me because I’m #GAY. Sorry but I’m more of a patriot than any of you haters, It takes a real patriot to recognize what happened in the capitol was WRONG!” Santos tweeted shortly after the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.
Republican voters have signaled an increased acceptance of homosexuality in polling over recent years. While a majority of Republicans in the House opposed a bill codifying gay marriage into law during the summer, polls show that a majority of GOP voters back same-sex marriage, despite stiff opposition nearly a decade ago.
GOP support for same-sex marriage is still lower than support among Democrats.
Some 1,095 LGBT candidates vied for political office in 2022, up from 1,006, the report said. There are over 1,000 LGBT elected officials in the United States, per the LGBTQ Victory Fund.
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President Joe Biden cruised to victory in the district in 2020, eclipsing then-President Donald Trump by a commanding 10 points. Cook Political Report ranks the district as “lean Democratic.”
Despite Democrats having held on to New York’s Long Island-anchored 3rd District for nearly a decade, Republicans have expressed optimism that a perfect storm is brewing that will enable them to achieve a breakthrough. Redistricting has weakened the partisan advantage the contours of the district have given Democrats, trimming its borders back west of Long Island. Additionally, economic woes and chatter of a red wave have given Republicans a glimmer of hope that they can paint the district red come November.
