Endorsed Candidates 4: Jennifer Wexton A Proven Supporter of LGBT+ Equality

Jennifer Wexton is running for Congress in Virginia’s 10th district against incumbent Barbara Comstock. This race is one of a record-setting number of races for this November’s election in which a woman is running for a Congressional seat to represent a Virginia district.

She has a long history of public service, starting with her time as the Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney for Loudon County from 2001 to 2005. She went on to do pro-bono legal work and through that developed a passion for work having to do with mental health issues. This led her to a position on the Loudon County Community Services board, which oversees the Loudon County Department of Mental Health, Substance Abuse and Developmental Services.

Jennifer was elected to the Virginia State Senate in a special election in 2014, and was then re-elected in 2015 by a 13-point margin.

Her history as a substitute judge and a prosecutor has made her passionate about criminal justice reform, and she is in favor of reforming mandatory minimums, ending the use of for-profit private prisons, and decriminalizing possession of small amounts of marijuana.

When she served in the Virginia State Senate, Jennifer Wexton served on the Governor’s Task Force on Prescription Drug and Heroin Abuse, and in Congress she hopes to continue to advocate for more and better treatment options for people with substance abuse problems, and to stop the over prescription of opioids.

She is also a strong advocate for LGBT+ rights, and in the Virginia State Senate she supported bills that would remove the ban on same-sex marriage in the Virginia State Constitution, end conversion therapy, and expand Virginia’s definition of hate crimes to include the LGBT+ community. She opposed a Virginia version of a “bathroom bill” and one that would have allowed government officials to refuse to marry same-sex couples. In Congress she hopes to continue to support legislation that will create a more inclusive and equal society.

In an interview she did alongside Senator Kirsten Gillibrand on Face the Nation she said of her identity as a woman and a mother, “As women we are able to check our egos at the door and work together to get things done and deliver results.” The LGBT Democrats of Virginia fully endorse her candidacy and know that when she is elected the next Congresswoman from Virginia’s 10th District that she will deliver results for all Virginians!

You can find out more about Jennifer Wexton, and support her campaign by going to https://jenniferwexton.com/.