Biden Campaign Launches LGBTQ+ Voter Initiative

Members of the Out for Biden steering committee include (from left) Sharice Davids, Reggie Greer, and Andrea Jenkins.

Joe Biden's presidential campaign has launched Out for Biden, a get-out-the-vote initiative aimed at mobilizing LGBTQ+ support for the Democratic nominee.

There are 11 million LGBTQ+ voters in the nation, representing all racial and economic backgrounds, and the initiative will seek to mobilize them in key battleground states, working with other pro-equality forces and along intersectional lines, campaign officials said.

"Our campaign's decision to launch Out for Biden in the shadow of historic protest elevates the power of the moment and encourages deep -- and sometimes difficult -- dialogue within our LGBTQ+ community as Pride Month begins," Reggie Greer, LGBTQ+ vote director for the Biden campaign, said in a press release issued Monday. "LGBTQ+ people of color are central to the fabric of our communities. We must elect a government that will center their voices and celebrate the contributions of LGBTQ+ people everywhere."

A steering committee for the initiative consists of a diverse group of LGBTQ+ activists. An organizing committee will coordinate and support the steering committee's work. Members of the organizing committee are Katherine Rice, an investment professional and cochair of LGBTQ+ fundraising for Biden; Alex Gabriel, a Democratic political consultant; and Matt Nosanchuk, the Democratic National Committee's liaison to the Jewish community and a former White House staffer during President Obama's administration.

The steering committee boasts numerous high-profile LGBTQ+ advocates and elected officials. Members, in addition to Greer, are Ohio State Sen. Nickie Antonio; U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin; North Carolina State Rep. Deb Butler; Rhode Island Congressman David Cicilline; Minnesota Congresswoman Angie Craig; Alphonso David, president of the Human Rights Campaign; Kansas Congresswoman Sharice Davids; Virginia State Sen. Adam Ebbin; Arizona State Reps. Daniel Hernandez and Arlando Teller; Colorado State Rep. Leslie Herod; Minneapolis City Council Vice President Andrea Jenkins; Florida State Rep. Shevrin Jones; Mara Keisling, executive director of the National Center for Transgender Equality Action Fund; Pennsylvania State Reps. Malcolm Kenyatta and Brian Sims; Daniel Lander, former Warren for President director of LGBTQ+ engagement and youth vote director; New York Congressman Sean Patrick Maloney; Michigan State Sen. Jeremy Moss; New Hampshire Congressman Chris Pappas; Georgia State Rep. Sam Park; former Houston Mayor Annise Parker, now president and CEO of the LGBTQ Victory Fund; Virginia State Del. Danica Roem; Bamby Salcedo, CEO and president of the TransLatin@ Coalition; Nevada State Sen. Pat Spearman; Kasey Suffredini, CEO and national campaign director for Freedom for All Americans; California Congressman Mark Takano; Andre Wade, state director for Silver State Equality; Evan Wolfson, founder and president of Freedom to Marry; Milwaukee Common Council member JoCasta Zamarripa; and Rick Zbur, executive director of Equality California.

Those behind the initiative aim to drive record LGBTQ+ turnout for Biden in November. As part of the initiative, the campaign has released a digital tool kit, available here, to help LGBTQ+ voters and allies reach out to others.