DETROIT -- Today, the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), the nation’s largest lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) civil rights organization, announced its endorsement of 15 pro-equality candidates for the Michigan State Legislature as well as Chief Justice Bridget Mary McCormack’s re-election.

“Right now, over 300,000 LGBTQ Michiganders live in a patchwork of protections,” said HRC Michigan State Director Amritha Venkataraman.“Driving from Detroit to Marquette, an LGBTQ person has different rights in every town, city or county they drive through because Michigan lacks comprehensive statewide nondiscrimination protections for LGBTQ people. That must change, and while the Bostock ruling has provided some protections workplace discrimination, LGBTQ people still are at risk of discrimination in housing, education, public accommodations or businesses. It’s time we elect a pro-equality Michigan House of Representatives to join Governor Whitmer in supporting real reform to improve the lives of LGBTQ Michiganders.”

Today’s endorsements include:

• Chief Justice Bridget Mary McCormack
• Abdullah Hammoud (HD-15)
• Laurie Pohustky (HD-19)
• Matt Kolezar (HD-20)
• Darrin Camillari (HD-23)
• Kelly Breen (HD-38)
• Julia Pulver (HD-39)
• Amara Manoogian (HD-40)
• Padma Kuppa (HD-41)
• Barb Anass (HD-45)
• Jody LaMacchia (HD-46)
• Donna Lasinski (HD-52)
• Christine Morse (HD-61)
• Abby Wheeler (HD-66)
• Rachel Hood (HD-76)
• Sarah Schultz (HD-98)

Michigan is one of 29 states in the country that lack explicit state-level protections for all LGBTQ people. In Michigan, legislators have introduced amendments to the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act to include sexual orientation and gender identity. With a pro-equality majority in the State House joining Michigan’s pro-equality governor, this critically important legislation would be on a path to finally becoming law.

In the 2018 midterms, HRC mobilized our grassroots army of 3.2 million members, supporters, and volunteers to work on behalf of pro-equality candidates and engage pro-equality voters primarily in six key states: Arizona, Michigan, Nevada, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. This unprecedented grassroots mobilization worked to recruit and train volunteers, register and mobilize voters and grow the organization's political organizing efforts in order to pull the emergency brake on the hateful anti-LGBTQ agenda of the Trump-Pence administration and elect a Congress that would hold them accountable.

In 2020, our engagement and mobilization efforts have only deepened. In addition to our expansive volunteer network, HRC will have at least 51 full-time staff in seven priority states (Arizona, Michigan, Nevada, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Wisconsin) and an additional 26 staff focused on a second tier of states. While in person organizing has been limited by the COVID-19 pandemic, HRC has embraced digital organizing, launching a new tool called TEAM allowing our broad network of volunteers and steering committees to engage their networks personally and hundreds of virtual phone banks and text banks to engage pro-equality voters even without the ability to interact in person.

The Human Rights Campaign is America’s largest civil rights organization working to achieve equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer people. HRC envisions a world where LGBTQ people are embraced as full members of society at home, at work, and in every community.