On gloomy night, New Yorkers approve Proposal 1 and LGBTQ incumbents win handily in NYC

On an otherwise dismal night for LGBTQ rights at the top of the ballot, New York State residents approved the Equal Rights Amendment and queer incumbents rolled to victory in state and federal races in New York City.

The passage of the Equal Rights Amendment, known as Proposal 1, means the Equal Protection of the Law clause of the state constitution — specifically Section 11 of the State Bill of Rights — will be amended to shield against discrimination on the basis of pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity, and more. It would deliver a solid layer of protection from government-driven discrimination, according to legal experts. 

“No person shall be denied the equal protection of the laws of this state or any subdivision thereof,” the amendment states. “No person shall, because of race, color, ethnicity, national origin, age, disability, creed, or religion, or sex, including sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, pregnancy, pregnancy outcomes, and reproductive healthcare and autonomy, be subjected to any discrimination in their civil rights by any other person or by any firm, corporation, or institution, or by the state or any agency or subdivision of the state pursuant to law.”

With nearly eight million votes cast, Proposal 1 led 57-35% on the morning after the election, according to New York State’s unofficial election results. Another 8% of voters left the question blank. 

As for LGBTQ candidates, the night was all about the incumbents. In the State Senate, out candidates Jabari Brisport of Brooklyn’s 25th District grabbed 84% in an uncontested race, while Brad Hoylman-Sigal easily defeated his GOP challenger, Emily Yuexin Miller, in Manhattan’s 47th District, by 63 points as of Nov. 6.

Hoylman-Sigal, who chairs the State Senate’s Judiciary Committee, said in a statement that he recognizes “the renewed responsibility I have at the state level to fight the MAGA takeover in Washington” and vowed to “continue to fight the disturbing rise of white Christian nationalism, anti-semitism, Islamophobia, racism, and xenophobia.”

Out State Senate candidate Minita Sanghvi was defeated by incumbent Jim Tedisco in the 44th District near Albany, while another out Democrat, Chloe Pierce, also lost in the race for the nearby 107th Assembly District to Scott Bendett.

In the State Assembly, three out candidates — Jessica González-Rojas of Queens’ 34th District and Tony Simone and Deborah Glick of Manhattan’s 75th and 66th Districts, respectively — all won their races without facing any competition.  One other out LGBTQ assemblymember, Daniel O’Donnell of Manhattan’s 69th District, did not run for re-election.

At the federal level, New York’s only out congressmember, Ritchie Torres of the Bronx’s 15th Disrict, had no difficulty knocking off his challengers, Gonzalo Duran and Jose Vega, with Torres carrying 69% of the vote in the district.

The bad news for LGBTQ candidates came north of New York City in the 17th Congressional District, where former Congressmember Mondaire Jones appeared to lose handily to incumbent GOP Representative Mike Lawler in what was expected to be a much tighter race than the results indicate. As of Nov. 6, Lawler easily dispatched Jones by a 16-point margin. 

Meanwhile, out Republican Alison Esposito lost her race in New York’s 18th Congressional District, with results showing a 57-43% lead for incumbent Democrat Pat Ryan.

In defeat, Jones said his district is “not the same district” that President Joe Biden won in 2020, but said he nonetheless “remains optimistic about America’s future,” citing the uneven trajectory of progress. “It was the honor of my life to represent the last version of New York’s 17th Congressional District the same communities that elevated me from poverty all the way to the House of Representatives,” he said in a concession statement. “My commitment to public service, and to pragmatic leadership in these times of extremism and divison, is as strong as ever.”

The bigger picture for pro-LGBTQ candidates looks far more dismal. Former President Donald Trump, who campaigned on an anti-LGBTQ platform laced with repetitive transphobic messaging, recaptured the presidency alongside his vice presidential nominee, Ohio Senator JD Vance — who also firmly opposes LGBTQ rights on issue after issue. Republicans also recaptured the US Senate, though control of the House of Representatives remains in question.

At LGBTQ bars across New York City — including the Stonewall Inn, Henrietta Hudson, and Julius’ — a dispirited mood settled in as the results pointed to the inevitability of a second Trump term. Many patrons retreated to their phones — a far cry from the energetic scene on display in the days following the 2020 election when celebrations broke out across the city to cheer Biden’s victory and Trump’s defeat.