Sarah McBride becomes first transgender person elected to US Congress

NEW CASTLE, Del. – Sarah McBride will be Delaware's next representative in Congress, becoming the first transgender person elected to federal office in the history of the United States.

McBride, a Democrat and state legislator, defeated Republican John Whalen in Tuesday's general election. She will assume the congressional seat vacated by U.S. Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester, who will replace retiring U.S. Sen. Tom Carper.

The victory is another step in a meteoric political rise for the 34-year-old Wilmington, Delaware, native. She gained national attention when she became the first openly trans person to speak at the 2016 Democratic National Convention.

More recently, she worked as national press secretary for the Human Rights Campaign, the country’s largest LGBTQ+ civil rights advocacy group. She calls former Delaware Gov. Jack Markell a political mentor and in media interviews has recounted how Beau Biden once called her a member of his family.

President Joe Biden wrote the foreword to her memoir.

McBride was elected to Delaware's Senate in 2020, a first for a trans person in Delaware, making her the highest-ranking trans elected official in the country. On the campaign trail, she pitched to voters her successful advocacy for statewide family and medical leave legislation in the state house.

At a political forum at the University of Delaware earlier last month, she was asked if her identity has influenced her campaign or policies. McBride responded that she will remain dedicated to using her platform to fight for important issues, rather than become "a spokesperson for a movement."

"I’m not running to be known for any one aspect of my identity," McBride said. "I’m running to be Delaware’s member of Congress focused on all of the issues that matter."

She emphasized that she will prioritize raising the minimum wage, ensuring paid family medical leave, and securing further gun safety protections in Congress.

Xerxes Wilson reports for The New Journal in Delaware.

This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: Sarah McBride makes history as first transgender member of US Congress