Gay Man Weighs Bid for
U.S. Senator

Jon Cooper, the majority leader of the Suffolk County legislature in New York, said yesterday that he is weighing whether to challenge U.S. senator Kirsten Gillibrand in the Democratic primary in 2010. The move could make Cooper, a wealthy manufacturing business owner and father of five adopted children, the first openly gay U.S. senator.

Cooper, 54, was the first elected official in New York State to endorse Barack Obama, and he served as the future president's Long Island campaign chair. In remarks to Newsday , Cooper suggested that he would apply a forward-thinking image to challenge Gillibrand, the former upstate congresswoman who was appointed by Gov. David Paterson in January after Hillary Clinton vacated the seat to become secretary of state.

"I consider myself progressive on the important issues. And obviously, Senator Gillibrand has not been a strong supporter in the past on either issue," he told Newsday, referring to gun control and gay rights.

Gillibrand, 42, has a 100% positive rating from the National Rifle Association. She supported federal civil unions for same-sex couples as a congresswoman, though she announced her support for marriage equality when she was appointed senator, making her one of only a handful of U.S. senators to do so.