SILVER LAKE, Calif. – Meet Maebe, Los Angeles’s first ever drag queen elected to public office and a gender-fluid politician who just may be California’s next congresswoman.
Her full name is Maebe A. Girl and in April she made history when she won a seat on the Silver Lake Neighborhood Council, becoming the first drag queen to be elected to office in the country. Now she is setting her sights on Washington.
“When I get elected to Congress I want to form a committee that focuses on homelessness issues, particularly because homelessness disproportionally affects LGBTQIA people,” said Maebe.
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The 2018 midterm elections ushered in a rainbow wave of LGBTQ politicians, with 10 out lawmakers voted into office. But so far there has never been a transgender member of Congress, which is why Maebe is running for California’s 28th District, a seat being held by Congressman Adam Schiff.
“Surprisingly everyone has treated me like just another regular person, which is really what I’m here to do, to show that queer people and trans people are regular people,” Maebe said.
She knows it will be an uphill battle. Schiff is a central player in the Impeachment Inquiry against President Donald Trump, and has close to $7 million on hand, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.
Maebe says she has nothing against him, but doesn’t think he is the right guy to represent her district, which includes West Hollywood, Burbank, Silver Lake, and Echo Park.
“There’s people out there making decisions on behalf of our community that don’t understand the struggles of being in our community,” Maebe said.
She is running to win, but even if doesn’t land the seat she is happy with her campaign so far.
“And even if we don’t get the actual representations we need this time, I hope that I’m setting up the pathway for somebody to come and do it anyways,” Maebe said.
Now she hopes voters will warm up to the idea of a different kind of candidate and vote yes on Maebe.