![Rebeccakaplanx180_0](https://www.advocate.com/media-library/rebeccakaplanx180-0.jpg?id=32723472&width=1200&height=1666)
CONTACTStaffCAREER OPPORTUNITIESADVERTISE WITH USPRIVACY POLICYPRIVACY PREFERENCESTERMS OF USELEGAL NOTICE
© 2024 Pride Publishing Inc.
All Rights reserved
All Rights reserved
By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Private Policy and Terms of Use.
Out Oakland city councilwoman Rebecca Kaplan announced her campaign for mayor Wednesday. If she wins, Oakland would become the third-largest U.S. city with an openly gay mayor, behind Houston and Portland, Ore.
According to The Bay Citizen, Kaplan, who announced her candidacy at a gallery in downtown Oakland, is likely to benefit from significant LGBT support in an election that demands candidates win a citywide majority. The gay community provides the largest voting base in Oakland outside of the African-American community. Neither of Kaplan's opponents, city council member Jean Quan and former state senate president pro tempore Don Perata, are gay or African-American.
However, The Bay Citizen reports that, "the LGBT-friendly Bay Area has never elected an out-gay mayor. Just one other openly gay politician -- former City Council member Danny Wan -- has been elected to citywide office in Oakland. Endorsements from the African-American and labor communities have thus far been split among the three candidates, producing no clear front-runner."
Kaplan, who is 39, enjoys the advantage of having been elected to citywide office twice with comfortable margins, according to the Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund. A former AC Transit Board member, she won the council's at-large seat in 2008.
Want more breaking equality news & trending entertainment stories?
Check out our NEW 24/7 streaming service: the Advocate Channel!
Download the Advocate Channel App for your mobile phone and your favorite streaming device!
From our Sponsors
Most Popular
Meet all 37 of the queer women in this season's WNBA
April 17 2024 11:24 AM
Here are the 15 gayest travel destinations in the world: report
March 26 2024 9:23 AM
21+ steamy photos of Scotland’s finest gay men in Elska Glasgow
February 01 2024 10:07 PM
More Than 50 of Our Favorite LGBTQ+ Moms
May 12 2024 11:44 AM
Conjoined twins Lori Schappell and trans man George Schappell dead at 62
April 27 2024 6:13 PM
Latest Stories
Nancy Pelosi endorses Kamala Harris for president
July 22 2024 4:07 PM
Charli XCX declares Kamala Harris IS brat & our next President's campaign agrees
July 22 2024 3:08 PM
Pete Buttigieg roasts JD Vance and his gay tech bro billionaire
July 22 2024 1:42 PM
The AIDs pandemic can be ended by 2030, but governments must act: report
July 22 2024 1:01 PM
Conservatives' first attack on Kamala Harris: Pronouns and accessibility?
July 22 2024 12:45 PM
Advancing equality during Disability Pride Month
July 22 2024 11:30 AM