LEXINGTON, Ky. — Democrat Emma Curtis launched her bid for the Lexington-based 93rd House District on Thursday, meaning she could become the first openly transgender member of Kentucky's legislature.

Curtis officially made the announcement in a social media live stream on her new campaign accounts. Her Twitter account, @emmaforky, surfaced Thursday afternoon with a link to her campaign's Linktree.

The 26-year-old Democrat was one of the many protesting against the state legislature when the GOP's supermajority passed Senate Bill 150, which, among other things, banned gender-affirming care for trans minors and limited discussion of LGBTQ+ issues in schools.

The seat has remained vacant since Democratic Rep. Lamin Swann passed away at 45 years old on May 15, 2023. Swann was a newcomer to the Kentucky House of Representatives.

"I believe that public service is about serving the public, not about serving yourself," Curtis said in her announcement, adding that she hopes to continue Swann's legacy of championing transparency and accessibility.

Curtis is not the first transgender person to pursue for a seat in the state House. Ramona Harris attempted to unseat incumbent former Louisville Democratic representative Charlie Miller in a 2020 primary, but lost by about 17 percentage points.

Rebecca Blankenship, who also played a role in the protests against SB 150 and is involved in Curtis’ campaign, became the first transgender elected official in the state last year when she won a seat on the Berea Independent School District’s board.

“While the significance is not lost on me, that I would be the first transgender statewide elected official, it’s also important to know that I’m not running to be ‘the transgender state representative.’ I’m running to be the state representative for the 93rd district,” Curtis told our partner, the Herald Leader.

The special election to fill the open 93rd House District seat will be held on general election day: Nov. 7, 2023.