Steve May, former Log Cabin Republicans National Board member and long-time warrior against “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” appears to have succeeded in taking the first step toward returning to the Arizona State House of Representatives after his write-in campaign far exceeded the number of votes necessary to qualify for the ballot this November.  May served as a state representative from 1998 until 2002, during which time he was chairman of the House Ways and Means committee.

A successful businessman, former Army reservist (discharged under DADT) and firm advocate for the GOP values of fiscal responsibility and individual liberty, Log Cabin Republicans is proud to support Steve May for the Arizona State House of Representatives.  For more about his campaign, see here.

Posted: August 25th, 2010 under Elections, In the News, In the States, Log Cabin In Focus.
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QUOTES OF INTEREST

Mark Halperin:  (Time Magazine, 7/19)

“Democrats also fear that Biggs’ admission will impact the flow of donations from corporate interests and lobbyists, who tend to want to bet on the party more likely to win the majority. Open musing about a Speaker John Boehner, House Democrats believe, will drive mercenary donors to shift their support to the GOP.”

Cook Political Report:  (Meet the Press, 7/18)

“…identifies 64 House seats now held by Democrats that could fall to a Republicans.”

Posted: July 21st, 2010 under Elections, GOP Progress, In Congress.
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Representative Ahn ‘Joseph’ Cao was shown to be a primary and general election leader by a recent survey released. Dr. Verne Kennedy of Market Research Insight surveyed 400 participants to discover the findings for Cao in the upcoming election. Representative Cao has been a supporter and key Member for the work that Log Cabin Republicans strives for. These survey results prove that “Inclusion Wins” in the Republican Party. A Republican takeover of Congress is not possible without the party being inclusive of all its members, Rep. Cao knows this. 

Key Findings from the Survey:

“The survey, conducted May 27 – June 2, 2010, shows Rep. Cao leading Cedric Richmond 51%-26% and Karen Carter Peterson 49%-30% in head-to-head matchups. When voters were asked if they would vote for Rep. Cao or “someone else,” Cao led 46%-29%. The Congressman has name recognition of 94%, 54% holding a favorable opinion of him and only 9% holding an unfavorable opinion.”

“The survey of 400 voters provides a survey error factor of 5.0% at a .95 level of confidence, meaning that if every voter in the Congressional District were interviewed, instead of this sample of 400, there is a 95% probability that results would be within 5% of those in this poll.”

For Additional Information:

 “Please contact Dr. Verne Kennedy at (850) 384-7040 or e-mail vkennedy@mri-research.com for more information. For additional comments, please call Bryan Wagner, Senior Campaign Advisor, at 504-616-6318.”

Posted: July 14th, 2010 under Elections, From the Right, GOP Heroes, GOP Progress, In Congress.
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The upcoming November election will make history for the GLBT community. For the first time ever a gay male Republican will face off against a lesbian Democrat for the State Assembly of California, District 74.

 Ralph Denney (R) a longtime member of Log Cabin Republicans will go head-to-head with Toni Akins (D). Each candidate won their primaries and is now revving up for November. Denney is a strong leader that describes himself as a family man and morale Christian. Education has emerged as Denney’s strongest passion in this race, campaigning for the public schools, reported the Gay and Lesbian Times. Denney’s opponent, Toni Adkins fights for affordable housing, crime reduction, and senior services and is a past Councilmember.

 For once, voters can make their decision on Republican or Democrat and focus on the actual issues and not whether a candidate is gay or straight. It won’t be about who you are sleeping with but what you actually stand for. Whomever the winner, he/she will be representing a GLBT majority community of San Diego. That’s progress, representatives that actually represent their community.

 There are currently four openly gay men serving in the Assembly, and hopefully it will soon be five with the addition of Log Cabin Republican Ralph Denney.

Posted: June 21st, 2010 under Elections, In the States, Log Cabin In Focus.
Comments: 1

Thank you to these Republican members of Congress for voting for the complete National Defense Authorization Act: Representatives Biggert, Bono Mack, Cao, Castle, Dent, Djou, Kirk, Reichert, Ros-Lehtinen. Thank you for voting on the right side of history.

Posted: May 28th, 2010 under Action Alert, Elections, From the Right, GOP Heroes, GOP Progress, In Congress, In Focus, Issues in Focus.
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The Utah Log Cabin Republicans hosted a forum with Senator Robert Bennett (R-UT) and five of his primary challengers. The forum coincided the a efforts by Chapter leaders to elect supportive delegates to the states upcoming delegation.

That group figures about 10 percent of delegates to the upcoming state convention are either Log Cabin Republicans or associate themselves closely with its stands — making it a voting bloc that candidates in a tight race cannot ignore.

About 100 people attended the debate it sponsored at the University of Utah.

“Two years ago, we had six delegates that we knew about,” said Utah Log Cabin Republicans Vice President James Humphreys. “This year, we are well over 200, thanks to a lot of hard work to get our supporters to the caucuses.” He adds he is calling other delegates to identify supporters among them and figures he may find 350 by the May 8 state convention.

“Not all of them are gay,” but he said they support the group’s philosophy of limited government, concern about fiscal matters and a desire for less interference in personal lives — including gay rights.

Besides working to get its members to caucuses, Humphreys said another reason the group may have so many delegates this year is because of a “fundamental shift in the level of tolerance that the rising generation has,” and because many new delegates elected are young “and have more of a philosophy of live and let live. It’s different than their grandparents’ generation.”

…

Bennett made clear he also is for defining marriage as between a man and a woman but said if the Supreme Court ever overturned that, he would respect the decision and not attempt to overturn it.

Bennett also said that if the Pentagon suggests overturning its “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy on gays serving, that he would support that — and not try to substitute his own opinions on what is best for military unit cohesion.

…

Much of the debate had little to do directly with gay rights. That included questions about foreign policy (all but Fabiano favored remaining in Afghanistan for now), budget earmarks (only Bennett defended them as a way for Congress to control spending decisions instead of President Barack Obama), and immigration.

Read more about the debate in the Desert Sun.

Posted: April 23rd, 2010 under Elections, In the News, In the States, Log Cabin In Focus.
Comments: 1

Tom Campbell, republican candidate for U.S. Senate in California, seems to be the sensible candidate that has what it takes to bring experience and change to Washington.  With three degrees in economics, culminating in a doctorate, a law degree, and experience in academia, Congress, and as California’s chief financial officer, Campbell clearly boasts the credentials needed to bring smart solutions to help turn our economy around.  Former coworkers from Campbell’s days as a law clerk and on up to his time representing Californians at the federal level, describe Campbell as “this completely open, sincere person” and “as principled and ethical a guy as you could imagine.”

Former California Republican Gubernatorial nominee, Bill Simon, who fought to remove Democratic Governor Gray Davis in 2002, is supporting Campbell in his bid to oust current U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer and help bring sensible leadership to Washington.

I’ve known Tom Campbell for over 20 years. I’m impressed with the depth of his knowledge and the strength of his opposition to federal spending, taxes and debt. Tom’s experience in government makes him extraordinarily well equipped to make a difference for taxpayers once elected.

Tom Campbell is a true and tested deficit hawk. When he served in Congress, he consistently earned high marks from the National Taxpayers Union Foundation, which twice named him “the most frugal” with tax monies.

Speaking with regards to Tom Campbells’ service to California as the state’s Finance Director, Congressman Tom McClintock praised his work, writing:

“Mr. Campbell commanded absolute respect from all sides because he was clear, straight-forward and honest — at times painfully honest — in representing the financial condition of the state. If the state was deficit spending, he would say so; if a measure created a short-term savings at long term expense, he would say so.”

Posted: April 14th, 2010 under Elections, In the States.
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Tom Campbell, a veteran elected official representing Californians at various levels,  is locked in a tight race against Carly Fiorina, the former chief executive officer of Hewlett-Packard.  Campbell and Fiorina are the front runners in the Republican primary, both vying for the chance to oust incumbent U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer.  While Campbell and Fiorina share conservative views on many issues, one issue divides the two candidates: same-sex marriage.

The issue of same-sex marriage is taking over the stage in California, but the focus is on the views of two main contenders for Barbara Boxer’s U.S. Senate seat in November, not on the fact that polls show that more Californians now support same-sex marriage than oppose it.  Tom Campbell says that he focuses on the issues that Californians are focused on, making the argument that same-sex marriage should not be the main issue on this campaign.

In October 2008, a month before the Proposition 8 vote, Campbell wrote an op-ed column in which he said government has no business making distinctions between people based on their personal lives. He said California has always made itself stronger by welcoming people, not excluding them.

“For those of us who are proud of our party and our state’s reputation for fairness and against discrimination, our choice is very clear: No on Proposition 8,” he wrote.

During the California Republican Party convention in early March, Campbell was asked how he could connect with many in the party who are more conservative on issues such as abortion and gay marriage.

“I’m telling you straight: Whenever I go out and speak, I get questions on unemployment, inflation, interest rates, the Central Valley being cut off from water. I don’t get the social questions, and I think that’s a sign of the importance of the economic issues,” said Campbell, who also supports abortion rights.

In an effort to discount Campbell’s record and aide Fiorina in her campaign, the National Orgnaization of Marriage has made its presence in the race by buying an ad that compares Campbell and Boxer as similar on many of the issues, including same-sex marriage.  Campbell hopes that voters will look past just the issue of marriage and vote on his experience and his understanding of the economy, the state, and Capitol Hill and that those issues will prevail.

Posted: April 5th, 2010 under Elections, In the States, Uncategorized.
Comments: 1

As the nation braces for what should be both an interesting and exciting election this November, and as Republicans are in a position to gain seats in Congress and in positions at the state level, there are a number of openly gay Republican candidates to keep on your radar.

Richard Tisei is the Minority Leader of the Massachusetts State Senate and is currently running for the position of Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts.  Richard won his first election in 1984 at the age of 22, becoming the youngest Republican ever elected to the Massachusetts Legislature.  Tisei is a fiscal conservative and reformer of state government with a track record of success.

Matthew Berry is a candidate for Virginia’s 8th Congressional District, encompassing Alexandria, Arlington, and Reston.  After graduating law school, Berry moved to Northern Virginia to pursue a career in public service; he is running on a platform of fiscal responsibility, government accountability, and individual rights.

Bonnie Dumanis is the incumbent running for re-election as District Attorney of San Diego County in California.  Dumanis, the first openly elected gay or lesbian District Attorney in the country, has served the people of San Diego County since 2003 when she was first elected in the historically Republican stronghold.

Eric Hickok, president of the Log Cabin Silicon Valley chapter, is the lone Republican running in his party’s primary in the South Bay’s 22nd Assembly District. Hickok, a 30-year old financial adviser, is a native of the Silicon Valley.

Ralph Denney, a 54 California native and tax accountant is running for the 76th Assembly district in California, located in San Diego.  Denney comes from a modest background and is running on a platform of improving educational attainment, reducing spending, and creating a pro-business environment in the State.

Dan Hill is running for State Assembly in Nevada’s 29th Assembly district, widely considered one of the state’s few swing districts with a narrow margin between the number of Democrat and Republican voters. Dan is a fiscal conservative with a platform focusing on spending, jobs, and education.

In the District of Columbia, Republicans are represented by two African-American gay candidates seeking to oust incumbent Democratic Councilmembers.  Marc Morgan, a moderate who has worked to support and protect the environment and fought on behalf of those living with HIV/AIDS is running in Ward 1.  Timothy Day, a D.C. Advisory Neighborhood Commission member is running in Ward 5.

Posted: March 24th, 2010 under Elections.
Comments: 1

The Christian Science Monintor reports on the dynamics at play aftert the revelation that California State Senator Ray Ashburn is gay, and the role of gay politicians in America and that gay men and lesbians play in conservative politics.

While it is unclear just how much Ashburn’s sexual orientation – apparently something of an open secret in Sacramento – played in his decision to leave politics, it raises new questions about gay Republicans’ place within the conservative movement.

While openly gay Republicans still face many hurdles, there has been significant change in how many conservatives view sexual orientation, says Charles Moran, spokesman for the Log Cabin Republicans, a conservative group that advocates gay rights.

“Absolutely, the Republicans still have issues they are trying to overcome in terms of of sexual orientation,” Mr. Moran says. “We are kicking down the doors and really forcing the Republican Party to deal with the fact there are gay conservatives.”

…

This year, though, openly gay conservative Matthew Berry is vying for the Republican nomination to contest the congressional seat held by Rep. Jim Moran (D) of Virginia. Mr. Berry is “not a gay candidate, but a candidate who happens to be gay,” said Robert Turner, vice president of the Washington chapter of the Log Cabin Republicans, in an e-mail response to questions. “And he’s good on the issues that Republican voters care about – taxes, education, national security, fiscal responsibility.”

“When you let your gayness define you, that is when people — the voters — lose interest,” Mr. Turner said.

According to Moran, conservatives such as former Vice President Dick Cheney and Meghan McCain, who both support gay marriage, are changing many conservatives’ negative views about homosexuality.

“[W]e are seeing a few more gay candidates running as Republicans each year,” said Turner.

It’s possible that Massachusetts could soon have the highest-ranking elected official who is gay. In the state’s upcoming governor’s race, a Republican candidate for lieutenant governor – Massachusetts Senate minority leader Richard Tisei – is openly gay.

Read more in the Christian Science Monitor.

Posted: March 9th, 2010 under Elections, In Focus, In the States, Log Cabin In Focus.
Comments: none