(ETH) – According to a report from the Christian News Network, Two states that have always been traditionally rooted in the “Bible Belt” of America have just elected the first openly homosexual members to their state legislatures on Tuesday, including a lesbian Episcopal priest.
In the state of Georgia, Democratic candidate Kim Jackson won the heavily Democratic District 41 by a landslide, defeating Republican challenger William Park Freeman 74.9% to 25%. Jackson is also an ordained Episcopal priest, and the interim vicar at the Church of the Common Ground in Atlanta, as well as a graduate of Candler School of Theology.
“Jackson, the first black LGBTQ+ person ordained as a priest in the Episcopal Diocese of Atlanta, previously served as chaplain at the Absalom Jones Center for Racial Healing and the Atlanta University Center, and as associate rector of All Saints’ Episcopal Church,” the Episcopal Diocese of Atlanta states.
Meanwhile, in Tennessee, two openly homosexual candidates were also chosen by voters to serve in public office. The report states that Democrat Torrey Harris and Republican Eddie Mannis were voted in. “I believe women and their doctors are in the best position to make informed decisions about what is best for them, no one else,” Harris said in a campaign video posted online.
Harris unseated longtime incumbent John DeBerry, who was a pro-life Democrat who supports biblical marriage and was forced to run as an Independent after the Democratic Party removed him from the ballot. The Christian Post reported that “Both Torrey and Eddie sent a clear message that LGBTQ candidates can win in a deep red state while being their authentic selves,” remarked former Houston, Texas Mayor Annise Parker, who now leads the LGBTQ Victory Fund. “Their presence in the state legislature can dilute the most toxic anti-LGBTQ voices and lead to more inclusive legislation.”
