Gus Kenworthy had quite the thirsty response to the news that openly gay, former Marine Neil Rafferty had won his race for the Alabama state house.
Responding to the news that Rafferty won his seat in Alabama’s 54th District, Kenworthy tweeted, “I have another seat for him” and added a blond, bearded face emoji.
One more fantastic midterm election result to report.
Hunky gay former Marine Neil Rafferty came out on top last night in his race for the state House seat in Alabama’s District 54.
Not only did he win – he won BIG!
According to AL.com, Rafferty trumped his opponent, Independent Joseph Casper Baker III by a margin of 90% to 10%!
Since 2006, the seat has been held by openly LGBT Rep. Patricia Todd who chose to retire this year. Todd endorsed Rafferty’s candidacy.
The political newbie had never run for political office before.
The Birmingham native spent four years in the U.S. Marines before returning home to earn a bachelor’s degree from the University of Alabama at Birmingham.
He currently works as the director of research and development at Birmingham AIDS Outreach.
Rafferty joined the Marines after his longtime boyfriend, Michael Rudolph had been deployed twice to Iraq as a Marine so they could stay together even though ‘Don’t Ask Don’t Tell’ was still in effect.
The couple, now together 14 years, are currently engaged and planning their wedding.
Democratic candidate for the Alabama state House, Neil Rafferty
Openly gay former U.S. Marine Neil Rafferty won his runoff contest last night in Alabama to become the Democratic candidate for the state House seat in District 54.
I reported last month that Rafferty narrowly missed having a runoff at all after getting 48% of the primary vote on June 5.
The political newbie is vying for the seat vacated by Democratic state Rep. Patricia Todd, who was the first openly gay legislator in Alabama. Todd has held the seat since 2006.
Rafferty was endorsed by Todd, who announced her retirement earlier this year.
The Birmingham native spent four years in the U.S. Marines before returning home to earn a bachelor’s degree from the University of Alabama at Birmingham. He currently works as the director of research and development at Birmingham AIDS Outreach.
Michael Rudolph (L) and Neil Rafferty (R)
Rafferty joined the Marines after his longtime boyfriend, Michael Rudolph had been deployed twice to Iraq as a Marine so they could stay together even though ‘Don’t Ask Don’t Tell’ was still in effect. The couple, now together 14 years, are currently engaged and planning their wedding.
According to AL.com, Rafferty received 2,531 votes, or 67.12 percent with 100 percent of the vote reporting. His opponent, environmentalist and marketer Jacqueline Gray Miller, received 1,240 votes, or 32.88 percent.
Although no Republican competed in District 54, Rafferty can’t quite claim victory just yet.
Joseph Baker has entered the race as an Independent and will face Rafferty in the November general election. That said, in that a Democrat has held the seat for 12 years and noting the current political environment, Rafferty’s chances at victory look very good.
Former Marine Neil Rafferty almost avoided a runoff in the race for the House District 54 seat to replace Patricia Todd in the Alabama State Legislature this past Tuesday.
Rafferty, who is openly gay, won 48% of the votes in his district. You have to cross the 50% threshold to avoid a runoff.
He will face-off against environmentalist Jacqueline Gray Miller who garnered 28% of the vote.
Both are Democrats – no Republicans contended for the state House seat.
Rafferty was endorsed by Todd, who announced her retirement earlier this year. She was the first openly gay lawmaker in Alabama.
The Birmingham native spent four years in the U.S. Marines before returning home to earn a bachelor’s degree from the University of Alabama at Birmingham.
Rafferty currently works as the director of research and development at Birmingham AIDS Outreach.
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