Out candidate Pat Hackett on Tuesday
won the Democratic primary for Indiana's 2nd Congressional
District seat.
Hackett, a teacher and lawyer, beat
Ellen Marks in the primary. She will face incumbent U.S.
Representative Jackie Walorski – who won her Republican primary on
Tuesday – in the fall.
Hackett was endorsed by the LGBTQ
Victory Fund, which supports openly LGBT candidates.
“Pat’s victory sets up a general
election battle between a solutions-oriented candidate aiming to
unite her district in a time of crisis and an opponent who uses the
politics of bigotry to further divide Americans,” Annise Parker,
president and CEO of the LGBTQ Victory Fund, said in a statement.
“Even as the pandemic ravaged Indiana and the country, Walorski
failed to put aside partisan politics and instead waged war against a
woman’s right to choose. Voters now have an opportunity to reject a
divisive and destructive politician and instead elect a leader who
will represent all her constituents. Pat will make history in
becoming the first openly LGBTQ member of Congress from Indiana if
elected in November. More importantly, she will head to Capitol Hill
determined to focus on the real and pressing issues that affect the
daily lives of Americans.”
In a video posted on YouTube, Hackett
called the upcoming election “historic.”
“This is a historic election,”
Hackett said. “I will be the first openly LGBTQ congressperson from
the state of Indiana. And this is [Vice President] Mike Pence's home
state.”
The LGBTQ Victory Fund said that
Walorski “consistently votes against non-discrimination protections
and other bills supportive of LGBTQ people.”
Walorski has earned a zero on the Human
Rights Campaign's (HRC) annual Congressional Scorecard three years in
a row. The survey measures a lawmaker's support for LGBT rights.