1. United States
2. Mich.
3. Letter

Transgender candidates in Massachusetts, Michigan, and Ohio are being knocked off ballots by their own Democratic primary opponents using obscure legal technicalities — and I need you to publicly condemn these tactics and push for reforms that stop them. The pattern is impossible to ignore. In Ohio, Vanessa Joy was disqualified for not listing a deadname on petitions under a law a 30-year political science veteran says he had never seen enforced — while a cisgender Republican who also changed his name was allowed to stay on the ballot. In Michigan, a text message allegedly shows a candidate's campaign manager coordinating a challenge against Toni Mua two days before it was filed, with the message "The transgender candidate will be eliminated." Mua won her challenge but spent roughly $10,000 — about 40% of her campaign funds — fighting it. These aren't good-faith legal disputes. They're targeted attempts to drain trans candidates of money and time. Full reporting here: https://www.unclosetedmedia.com/p/democrats-are-trying-to-disqualify Trans representation among elected officials has grown over 700% since 2017. That progress is being actively undermined from inside the Democratic Party. I want to see you speak out against these challenges by name, support dedicated legal defense funding for LGBTQ candidates, and back reforms that close the documentation loopholes being weaponized against trans people running for office.