While the RNC is trying its damnest to bolt the closet door shut, the Democratic National Convention is on track to break records with the number of openly LGBT candidates attending next week’s event in Charlotte, NC.
According to the Washington Blade, National Stonewall Democrats identified 470 openly LGBT delegates expected to attend the 2012 convention and for the first time Arkansas, Mississippi and Alaska are among the states contributing to that number.
When taking into account officials attending the convention, we’re talking a total of 518 LGBT participants. Though the number could be even higher since the NSD has incomplete info from gay political meccas, California and New York.
This year easily trumps 2008’s convention in Denver, which had 365 LGBT participants and the 2004 convention in Boston, which drew 282. The reason could be that this is the first year each state has set a goal to send at least one LGBT delegate. Some states have a goal as low as one while California is setting the gay bar at 74. Some 37 states have met or exceeded their goals while 16 have fallen short.
How about we take this to the next level?
Our newsletter is like a refreshing cocktail (or mocktail) of LGBTQ+ entertainment and pop culture, served up with a side of eye-candy.
A record number of transgender delegates — about nine or ten — are also expected to attend this year’s DNC. These numbers aren’t official and it’s unclear when the DNC will make the final numbers public, though they’re expected to come out some time before the convention starts on September 3.
Brandon
The democratic convention always roundly trounces the RNC when it comes to diversity.
The RNC always looks like a big bowl of aging white folks with a smattering of young staffers and token blacks (and lets not forget the dilusional gays). The republican party has had a diversity problem for countless years, and during the Obama years, it has only gotten much worse, despite the number of Blacks they hire to trot in front of cameras for news shows.
Neo
Thankfully the ageing, hideously white, racists of the republican party are slowly, and deservedly dying out. Time will give us the win, we are better than them, we are more moral, more intelligent and better at life without the spiteful religion and hate that shortens and makes lives miserable.
Joel J
@Brandon: This year’s crowd look even older than in 2008. They cling to a vision of America that no longer exists, not demographically nor culturally.
Aximill
I’ll be one of those delegates!
Jamie
@Aximill:
How do you become a delegate? I wish I was! I always wanted to go!
jeff4justice
Because homoes have piss-poor ethics too just like heteros. All hail Oabama and is NDAA, drone attacks, protestor’s rights attacks, allowing frankenfood corporations to ruin the human food supply, and attacking medical marijuana users.
As with homophobes, 2party system supporters will be the embarrassment of future generations.
Joel J
@jeff4justice: I think your marijuana use has affected your ability to construct a cogent argument.
jeff4justice
@Joel J: If one supports freedom to use marijuana they must be a user? Stupid. If one supports marriage equality they must be gay?
You have no defense of the 2party system so I understand all you can do is make petty pointless comments like that.
Joel J
@jeff4justice: Stupid is as stupid does.