Curtis Hertel on his plan to “fight extreme anti-LGBTQ+ legislation in District 7.”

The presidential election has rightly captured the attention of many Americans, as former President Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris present two starkly contrasting visions for America's future.

In the Michigan vote, the slightly lower decision may be just as impactful.

“[The 7th] “The district is one of the districts that will make or break Congress, not just for Republicans and Democrats, but whether we have sensible people in Congress — and that's what I'm focused on,” Curtis Hertel, a former state senator and Democratic nominee for the USA House, Pride Source said.

Michigan's 7th congressional district, which includes Lansing and other key parts of central and southern Michigan, was formerly held by Rep. Elissa Slotkin. The seat is now up for grabs as members of Congress turn their attention to the U.S. Senate. Hertel and former state senator Tom Barrett will be the names on the ticket in November.

At a time of intense focus on LGBTQ+ politicization, the makeup of Congress has had and will continue to have a lasting impact on the lives of LGBTQ+ Americans. Jason Morgan, The openly gay state representative and vice chair of the Michigan Democratic Party weighed in on what the decisions would really mean for the LGBTQ+ community.

“I am pleased to have Curtis Hertel representing this district in Congress as he will continue to push back against extreme anti-LGBTQ+ legislation and work to expand LGBTQ+ protections for Michiganders,” Morgan told Pride Source. “He will always have our back when extreme politicians in Washington try to harm our community.”

Hertel has long fought for the LGBTQ+ community, even before it became the norm for Democrats. From consistently co-sponsoring supplements to Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act – formally codifying LGBTQ+ protections from discrimination in Michigan – and helping build the majority in the state Senate for passage, to his work on gay marriage as the Register of Deeds, he has made his intentions clear.

“Throughout my career I have advocated for equal rights,” reiterated Hertel. “When I was a county commissioner, I supported marriage equality long before any Democrats held that position — that was about 20 years ago.”

“When I was Register of Deeds, I had the first marriage licenses filed with other states’ Register of Deeds offices to ensure we were protecting property records,” he added. “It is one of my core concerns – I care about fighting for rights and would continue the fight that has defined my entire career in Congress.”

Although Hertel was no longer a state senator, he made sure to be present at the time of the passage of the Elliott-Larsen Act. “I was so proud to be on the floor when my friend Jeremy Moss presided over the inquest and that was sent off,” he said. “This is what I have been working towards my entire career. I would have given a kidney to cast that vote.”

His opponent Tom Barrett takes a different approach to dealing with LGBTQ+ issues.

Barrett opposed an expansion of the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act to include protections for LGBTQ+ Michiganders and has previously voted for and co-financed draft laws to enable discrimination against LGBTQ+ Michiganders attempting to marry or adopt children.

Morgan pointed out that Barrett has used the identity of LGBTQ+ people as a political bargaining tool in the past.

“Just the last campaign when he [Barrett] When he was running for the same seat, he sent text messages to voters about gender reassignment surgery to raise money for his campaign,” Morgan said. “I think you would see this behavior more if he won. You would see him working to roll back our lives and protections here in the state. I think we would see some pretty unfortunate consequences if he took on that role.”

During his time in office, Barrett famously took a strong anti-abortion stance. Hertel says Barrett's policies are inconsistent with the wishes of voters in the Seventh District.

“He [Barrett] “He was never about working across the aisle, in fact he has an extreme track record on women’s rights,” Hertel explained. “He supported laws that would put doctors and women in prison. He believes that life begins at conception, so we are talking about vulnerable IVF and contraception. He is someone who I think is not in tune with that [7th] District.”

If elected, Hertel said he plans to continue supporting the LGBTQ+ community. “I am proud that Congress passed the Respect for Marriage Act, and I would fight for passage of the Equality Act to codify protections for LGBTQ+ people on multiple fronts dealing with discrimination in the areas of housing, education and employment,” he said. “I'm proud of it Supported by the Human Rights Campaign – that’s something that’s meaningful to me.”

Morgan encouraged passionate voters to get involved in the campaign ahead of the November election. “They can knock on doors, make phone calls, donate whatever money they can donate – there is still a lot of work to be done to make sure people know what is at stake in the election and that they understand that their vote is true.” “It really counts,” he said.

He added that voters in November will be faced with a rare opportunity where they believe the choice is completely clear.

“There is rarely as stark a contrast between two candidates in a race as there is between Senator Hertel and Senator Barrett,” Morgan said. “Senator Hertel has worked on the other side, he has worked for the people of Michigan for a long time and he will represent what is special really well.”

“Senator Barrett has proven himself to be nothing but extreme and divisive,” Morgan added. “I hope people see this and make the right choice.”