The Importance of Transgender Representation in Politics

The notion of the “transgender” in the way that it is understood today was only constructed in the early 1990s. For this reason, along with the lack of formal education on transgender history and issues, transgender people remain greatly misunderstood and socially disadvantaged in today’s society.

It is no surprise that the November 2017 election of Danica Roem, the first openly transgender person to win a seat in the Virginia state legislature (and the second in any state legislature), was a groundbreaking moment for the transgender community, as it gave the community political representation it had long awaited. To make the win even more rewarding and noteworthy for the transgender community specifically, Danica Roem replaced incumbent Republican Robert Marshall, the man infamous for pushing a bill forcing people to use the public bathroom that coordinates with their biological sex rather than the gender with which they identify. Mr. Marshall has also been outspoken against other LGBT+ issues such as same-sex marriage.

The legislative branch of America’s current federal government is dominated by heterosexual, middle-class, white men who make decisions on behalf of all of the underrepresented identity groups that also help comprise today’s society. Thus, representation of all minority groups is important for the social and political well-being of our nation. Nonetheless, transgender representation in government is particularly lacking.

As discussed in an academic piece about minority representation by University of Richmond Professor Eric Grollman, simply seeing somebody who looks like you or represents a central part of your social identity on a large scale can have self-validating and empowering effects. As this reality is far less common for members of the transgender community – especially in the form of positive representation – than it is for more privileged identity groups, Danica Roem’s election likely made many transgender individuals feel that they, too, could be successful on a grand scale.