LAS VEGAS, Nev. — Silver State Equality, Nevada’s leading statewide LGBTQ+ civil rights organization, today announced the endorsement of seven candidates statewide.
“We are in perilous times. Now more than ever, Nevada needs courageous leaders in Washington, D.C., Carson City and on the local level who will fight for full, lived LGBTQ+ equality and who will stand up against anti-LGBTQ+ extremists.” said André C. Wade, State Director, Silver State Equality. “This election year, justice, the Supreme Court, reproductive justice, voter’s rights, LGBTQ+ equality and more are on the ballot – democracy is on the ballot! We are confident that these pro-equality candidates, if elected, will work tirelessly to advance civil rights and social justice for LGBTQ+, all marginalized communities and all Nevadans.”
The following candidates have received endorsements from Silver State Equality:
Nevada Congressional District 2: Patricia Ackerman Ackerman understands the urgency to fight for policies that prioritize marginalized and under-served communities. A first-time candidate, she is the daughter of immigrants who suffered the atrocities of the Nazis and Soviets. Following deeply ingrained personal values of honesty, decency, integrity, empathy and compassion, she will use her public platform to advocate for a living wage; Medicare for All; clean energy; quality public education; comprehensive immigration reform; closing the national pay gap, with attention paid to Black, Latina, Indigenous, disabled women, and LGBTQIA+ people; the right-to-choose; public land protection; indigenous peoples rights, and gun safety and reform. Ackerman can be trusted to be a champion for all Nevadans, and especially the state’s most vulnerable and marginalized populations.
Nevada State Senate District 18: Elizabeth (Liz) Becker Elizabeth Becker’s background as an environmental scientist, educator and longtime volunteer in the gun safety movement primes her to represent Southern Nevada on some of the significant issues facing the region. Becker served as the State Chapter Lead for Moms Demand Action, the gun violence prevention group, in 2016 and 2017 and as their Communications Lead until Fall 2019. If elected, she will be a persuasive advocate for sustainability, community safety, public education and affordable healthcare.
Nevada State Assembly District 1: Daniele Monroe-Moreno Elected to the State Assembly in 2016, Monroe-Moreno ran for office after living in her district for more than two decades and seeing the need for criminal justice reform, affordable and accessible healthcare and advocacy on behalf of the veterans. She has served on and led numerous committees including the Legislative Committee on Child Welfare, and the committee on Government Affairs, Legislative Operations and Elections. Monroe-Moreno has sponsored and worked on legislation that expands access to healthcare in Nevada. She is passionate about banning for-profit prisons and a strong supporter of comprehensive criminal justice reform.
Nevada State Assembly District 2: Dr. Radhika Kunnel Kunnel’s experience as a scientist, public health official, educator and recent law school graduate has provided her with the skills to be a formidable force in the Nevada State Assembly for equality for LGBTQ+ persons, women and for under-served and disenfranchised communities. If elected, she will be a powerful voice in advocating for healthcare for all, educational equality, job creation, an equitable economy, judicial reform and renewable energy. Prior to beginning her legal career she was a tenured Associate Professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Cancer Institute at the University of Mississippi Medical Center and Department of Pharmacology and Cancer Institute at Tulane University of Health Sciences. She received her Ph.D. in Cancer Biology from Louisiana State University Health Science Center and Post-doctoral fellowship in adult stem cell biology and regenerative medicine from Tulane University of Health Sciences. She was instrumental in developing non-embryonic stem cell core at both Tulane and UMMC. Her research interest was to establish personalized therapeutics for solid tumors by targeting the tumor stroma and cancer stem cells. She has co-authored more than 60 peer-reviewed articles and book chapters.
Nevada State Assembly District 10: Rochelle Nguyen Nguyen is the first democratic Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) to serve in the Nevada Legislature and a champion for raising wages for hardworking Nevadans, capping medical costs, increasing funding for schools, protecting public lands, addressing climate crisis and reforming the criminal justice system. She is a proven leader who has pushed for greater economic opportunities for all Nevadans, but especially for those communities most at-risk. She co-founded the first AAPI Nevada Legislative caucus and serves on the Judiciary, Health and Human Services, and Growth and Infrastructure Committees. Nguyen is a criminal defense attorney having earned her law degree from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.
Clark County School Board of Trustees District A: Lisa Guzman and Liberty Leavitt (dual endorsement)
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As Nevada’s statewide LGBTQ civil rights organization, Silver State Equality brings the voices of LGBTQ+ people and allies to institutions of power in Nevada and throughout the U.S. Silver State Equality strives to create a world that is healthy, just and fully equal for all LGBTQ+ people. Silver State Equality is a Nevada-based program affiliated with and supported by Equality California and Equality California Institute, the nation’s largest statewide LGBTQ civil rights organization. More information at SilverStateEquality.org.
