Today, the republican governor of North Carolina, Pat McCrory, conceded defeat after weeks of vote recount efforts.
McCrory leaves a disturbing legacy of anti-transgender discrimination in his wake.
Earlier this year, McCrory signed HB 2, a devastating piece of legislation that was first-of-its-kind in codifying anti-transgender discrimination into law by effectively banning transgender people from using public restrooms.
Since then, there has been a rising tide of opposition—from grassroots supporters, to businesses, to lawmakers on both sides of the aisle calling for repeal of the law.
But Pat McCrory remained staunch in his support of HB 2, ignoring the nearly $600+ million dollar price tag—from frozen investments, diverted tourism revenue, and cancelled events—for discrimination. While his opponent ran on his opposition to HB 2, McCrory’s reelection bid was a referendum on his support for the law.
Make no mistake: It was @PatMcCroryNC‘s staunch support for anti-#LGBT #HB2 that led to his defeat today. pic.twitter.com/XsXDNCiDKR
— Freedom for All USA (@freedom4allusa) December 5, 2016
But on Election Day, North Carolina voters hit the polls in droves to send a strong, clear message: Anti-transgender discrimination has dire consequences.
While other Republicans like Richard Burr and Donald Trump won by healthy margins—at the end of the night, Gov. Pat McCrory was trailing his opponent by thousands of votes. That margin of defeat only continued to wide until today, when he officially conceded.
This marks a crucial victory for the movement for transgender non-discrimination. It shows that voters are willing to break party lines to unseat lawmakers who advance discrimination in their state.
And it signals that, regardless of political and other differences, a vast majority of Americans support treating people fairly and equally under the law.
Those are values that we stand for here in New Hampshire. And we want to make sure that our elected officials are seeing in the news out of North Carolina—and are ready to legislate on behalf of ALL people living in the Granite State in the name of fairness, respect, and equality for all.
