A typical election-year scene involves a Congressional candidate engaging with the crowd at a college football game. Sarah McBride’s modest gesture of shaking hands at Delaware State University, however, has the potential to mark a watershed moment in American history. If elected, she would be the first transgender member of the United States House of Representatives.
When asked what that means to her, McBride answered, “It demonstrates to Delawareans that the candidacy of someone like me is even possible.”
When “Sunday Morning” first met McBride during the epidemic, she had already made history as the first transgender person to be elected to a state senate seat, making her America’s highest-ranking transgender elected official. Now, at 34, with nearly two terms under her belt, she is campaigning for higher office but maintains it is not about her status as a trans woman.
She told me, “I believe people are aware of my personal commitment to equality as an LGBTQ person.” “But my priorities are going to be affordable child care, paid family and medical leave, housing, health care, and reproductive freedom.”
Her Republican opponent in the Congressional campaign is John Whalen III, a retired Delaware State Police officer. His major aims are to end illegal immigration and reduce the government debt. He refused to do an interview for this article, but when asked if McBride’s transgender status would be a factor in the election, he answered, “There’s more important things than that.”
Professor Danna Young, Director of the University of Delaware’s Center for Political Communication, agrees. “I think voters really do want to hear about other issues,” according to her.
In 2018, Young co-authored a study on views regarding transgender candidates. “We asked people if they would be willing to support a transgender candidate if that candidate were from their own party,” according to Young. “And the results showed that there really was not a lot of support for a transgender candidate.”
However, she now questions whether that study would still hold up today, particularly given that it didn’t focus on a specific transgender candidate like Sarah McBride. “People know her now, especially in a state that’s small,” Young told me.
Delaware voters are already familiar with McBride’s story, which includes how she met her future husband, Andrew Cray, a transgender man, during an Obama-era White House ceremony. “Andy was the kindest, funniest, smartest person that I ever met,” McBride told me.
Cray would die of cancer only four days after their wedding.
Professor Young describes everything that has reinforced Sarah McBride: “She is difficult. I’m not concerned about her ability to withstand any national-level attacks she may face,” Young added.
The Republican presidential contender is emphasizing transgender concerns, including falsely accusing youngsters of undergoing surgical procedures. “Your child goes to school and returns home a few days later with an operation,” Donald Trump recently addressed the conservative organization Moms for Liberty.
McBride continued: “I wouldn’t be the first person in Congress to be part of a community that Donald Trump has said outrageous things about.”
When asked how she could reconcile with other members of Congress who had shouted against transgender individuals, McBride replied, “I think the ones who are really caught up in this are the folks who are the professional provocateurs.” They are unlikely to collaborate with any Democratic colleagues. They can scarcely cooperate with their Republican colleagues.”
According to a recent University of Delaware poll, McBride leads by more than 20 points in this heavily Democratic state. And, if elected, McBride believes she will not be the last transgender member of Congress.
“We know throughout history that the power of proximity has opened even the most closed of hearts and minds,” she informed us. “And I still believe that the power of proximity taps what I believe to be the most fundamental human emotion, which is empathy.”
