Meet the Candidates: Washington's Brady Piñero Walkinshaw

The Victory Fund is working to elect dozens of LGBT candidates to higher office and we're featuring the stories of several of these men and women as the election nears.

Brady Pinero Walkinshaw currently represents the 43rd district in the Washington State House. He has served in this post since 2013. As legislator, the 32-year-old politician has worked to expand transportation, affordable housing, and mental health services. In 2015 he sponsored a bill, Joel's Law, which gives families access to emergency health treatment for loved ones in need. It passed with overwhelming bipartisan support.

Prior to holding public office, Walkinshaw worked at the World Bank. He was also employed as a program officer at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, at which he worked to assist small farmers. A Fulbright Scholar, he founded a nonprofit, Proyecto Villa Nueva, in order to prevent violence against young people in Honduras. He is a graduate of Princeton University, where he studied public policy.

Walkinshaw married his partner, marine biologist Micah Horwith, in August 2015. They currently reside in Seattle's Capitol Hill gayborhood. Walkinshaw's mother is a Cuban immigrant and his father is a Washington native, with roots that go back several generations. Walkinshaw will become the first out Latino congressman if elected to the U.S. House of Representatives.

On his campaign website, Walkinshaw lists immigration, LGBT rights, gun control, criminal justice reform, women's rights, and animal rights as among causes for which he will advocate as a congressman. His diverse background and experiences give him a unique insight into these issues.

"I have felt the sting of discrimination at times in my life, and I am proud to stand against discrimination in any form -- from the workplace to schools to access to public restrooms," he wrote on the website. "As a Member of Congress, I will stand up for LGBTQ equality in our community and in every corner of our country."

"Immigrants founded our country and remain a source of strength to our national community," he added. "The diversity in our region makes us stronger and more innovative. As the son of a Cuban immigrant, I deeply value the rich history that each immigrant brings to our region. Our nation needs comprehensive immigration reform immediately to bring millions of Americans out of the shadows and into our society."