David Cicillines Victory

And now there are four.

Though Democrats faced a particularly bruising Tuesday evening in races for the U.S. House, the party now has its fourth openly gay representative: Rhode Island's David Cicilline, who beat Republican challenger and Rhode Island state representative John Loughlin to secure the state's first district seat, formerly held by Rep. Patrick Kennedy, who announced his retirement this year.

Cicilline issued the following statement to The Advocate early Wednesday evening following his victory in the race.

"I am thrilled to be the next Congressman from Rhode Island's First District and so grateful to the members of the LGBT community who supported my campaign," Cicilline said. "I look forward to going to Washington and fighting for the issues important to all of us -- creating good jobs, protecting Social Security, working to fight global climate change, and, of course, fighting for full equality for our community."

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