Bernie Sanders gets crucial endorsement from trailblazing transgender politician
Christine Hallquist was the first transgender major party gubernatorial candidate in the US (YouTube/Bernie Sanders)
Christine Hallquist, the first out transgender person to be a major party’s nominee for governor, has given her official endorsement to Bernie Sanders’ campaign.
Hallquist was the Democratic nominee for Vermont governor in 2018. She lost the election to incumbent Republican candidate Phil Scott, but she remains a prominent LGBT+ activist.
In a release from the Sanders campaign on Wednesday, Hallquist urged voters to put their support behind Bernie Sanders, who will be “the president that unites us”.
“As an open and proud candidate for governor, Bernie stood by me and aggressively supported my campaign,” she said.
“I have known and worked with Bernie for decades. We worked together on issues like rural development, climate change and the environment. He is the most consistent and honest leader I have ever worked with.
“Bernie is the only candidate that has consistently supported policies of economic justice. This is especially important to our transgender community, who unfortunately, like so many other communities, struggle with high levels of unemployment, low wages and lack of healthcare.
“He is about Medicare For All, a living wage, and equal opportunity. This is about creating a civilised society. When we welcome people from all economic backgrounds, including those we disagree with, we will find common ground.”
Sanders responded: “Christine is a trailblazer. As long as I’ve known her, she’s been on a mission to expand the use of sustainable energy. I was proud to work with her in Vermont, I was proud to support her gubernatorial campaign in 2018, and I’m very proud to have her support in this race.”
Hallquist is one of many famous faces who have lent their names to Sanders’ campaign, including Ariana Grande, Danny DeVito, Cardi B, Mark Ruffalo, Emily Ratajkowski, Sarah Silverman and Lizzo.
She further discusses her reasons for backing Bernie in the episode 44 of the Hear The Bern podcast.
