Danica Roem Elected Virginia's First Trans Senator

Facts

• Democrat Danica Roem narrowly defeated Republican challenger Bill Woolf on Tuesday to secure a seat in the Virginia state Senate, becoming the state’s first transgender state Senator and the second trans person to serve in any state Senate in the US.¹
• Roem — whose campaign featured key transgender and LGBTQ+ issues — won slightly over 50% of the vote.²
• Meanwhile, Woolf, a former Fairfax County police detective endorsed by Gov. Glenn Youngkin, campaigned on banning transgender athletes from competing against students of the opposite biological sex.³
• Roem also focused on issues such as gun control, healthcare, and other transportation projects, while Woold campaigned on safety and school choice. The highly watched election saw Roem’s campaign raise more than $2M while Woolf’s raised just under $1.4M, according to the Virginia Public Access Project.⁴
• Roem rose to prominence in 2017 by becoming Virginia’s first openly transgender lawmaker elected to the state House. The Democrat has served in the House for the last six years and joins Delaware state Sen. Sarah McBride as the nation’s second openly trans state Senator.⁵
• Roem’s victory came amid a wave of Democratic victory, as Democrats appeared to have defended their majority in the state Senate while closing in on retaking the lower chamber.⁶

Sources: ¹NBC, ²Huffington Post, ³ABC27, ⁴Manassas, ⁵Yahoo News and ⁶Virginia Mercury.

Narratives

• Left narrative, as provided by The Pink News. Danica Roem made history for a second time on Tuesday night to become Virginia’s first openly transgender state Senator. Roem had to overcome a campaign riddled with transphobia, yet she prevailed in a victory for the LGBTQ+ community and all defenders of equality. She showed that hate will not win in Virginia, and she will continue to fight for all of her constituents regardless of their identity.
• Right narrative, as provided by The Federalist. As Virginia — like much of the country — heads down a path of woke ideology, it's no surprise that those conforming to the doctrine are allowed to lead the way. Time will tell if Danica Roem has anything to offer other than diversity, but if not, the Democrat may receive backlash from the American public as it's forced to toe the line against their personal beliefs.