Washington – Today, the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), the nation’s largest lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) civil rights organization, announced its endorsement of Angie Craig for election to the U.S. House of Representatives in Minnesota’s 2nd Congressional District. Craig, who is an out and proud married lesbian, is the first candidate HRC has endorsed for Congress this cycle. “Angie Craig has worked tirelessly in both her personal and professional life for fairness, justice, and equality,” said JoDee Winterhof, HRC Senior Vice President for Policy and Political Affairs. “We are confident she will continue that fight as a pro-equality voice in Congress. HRC is proud to endorse her to represent Minnesota’s 2nd Congressional District.” Craig grew up in Arkansas and came out to friends and family in the early 1990's. In 2000, she waged a lengthy custody battle in Tennessee courts to keep her adopted son. That landmark case, which she won, helped set precedent for same-sex couples adopting elsewhere in the state. As the former head of global human resources of the Fortune 500 company St. Jude Medical, Craig also worked to advance equality within her company and helped to enlist the business community’s support for marriage equality across Minnesota. "I am so fortunate to now be able to raise my family in a state that proactively chose to extend marriage rights to same-sex couples,” said Angie Craig. “But we can't rest on past successes. There is still so much work that needs to be done in this country to eliminate discrimination against members of the LGBT community in housing, in the workplace, in adoption, among other areas. I look forward to continuing to work side-by-side with the Human Rights Campaign to champion the Equality Act as a Member of Congress and accomplish our shared goals and vision for equality." The Human Rights Campaign is America’s largest civil rights organization working to achieve lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender equality. HRC envisions a world where LGBT people are embraced as full members of society at home, at work and in every community. ###

Paid for by the Human Rights Campaign PAC and authorized by Angie Craig for Congress