Openly gay Cicilline wins RI primary

David Cicilline, the openly gay mayor of Providence, Rhode Island, won a Sept. 14 primary to succeed Patrick Kennedy in Congress.

"Thank you to everyone who voted in the primary election yesterday," Cicilline wrote in a Sept. 15 post on his campaign website (www.cicilline.com). "Together, we showed that Rhode Island voters are looking for a representative who will provide practical solutions to the challenges facing our state. Let's keep fighting over the next seven weeks to help make Congress start delivering real results again for hardworking men and women."

Cicilline defeated businessman Anthony Gemma, state Rep. David Segal, and former state party chairman Bill Lynch for the Democratic nomination. He will become the fourth openly gay member of Congress if elected in November.

The Pawtucket Times reported on Sept. 17 that most recently, Cicilline had gained endorsements from New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and President Barack Obama.

"With so much still left to be done and too many families struggling to get by, we need to keep America moving forward -- which means I need you to support David Cicilline for Congress. With you help, we'll make sure to send David Cicilline to Washington to fight for you and your district," read an e-mail from Obama's political organization.

"We are very excited to have President Obama's support to help our grass roots campaign," Rich Luchette, communications director for the Cicilline campaign, told the Times. "David is going to keep fighting hard to make sure that, as a representative, he gets Congress working for middle class families."

Bloomberg referred to Cicilline as a "terrific Mayor."

On his campaign website, Cicilline described the importance of fighting for LGBT civil rights. "As an openly gay man, I have a deep understanding of the importance of achieving equality for all citizens," he said. "I will continue to work hard in Congress to ensure full LGBT equality in marriage, in the workplace, in schools, and in communities."

Cicilline promised to work against the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), the federal ban on legal recognition of same-sex marriage, and bemoaned the lack of federal protections against LGBT discrimination in the workplace.