Congressional Equality Caucus
Caucus in the U.S. Congress promoting LGBTQ+ rights From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Caucus in the U.S. Congress promoting LGBTQ+ rights From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Congressional Equality Caucus, formerly the Congressional LGBTQ+ Caucus, was formed by openly gay representatives Tammy Baldwin and Barney Frank on June 4, 2008, to advance LGBT+ rights.[1][2] The caucus is chaired by the most senior member and is co-chaired by twelve of the United States House of Representatives' twelve current openly LGBT members; during the 119th Congress, the caucus is chaired by Representative Mark Takano and is co-chaired by representatives Becca Balint, Angie Craig, Sharice Davids, Robert Garcia, Julie Johnson, Sarah McBride, Chris Pappas, Mark Pocan, Emily Randall, Eric Sorensen, and Ritchie Torres.[3]
Congressional Equality Caucus | |
|---|---|
| Chair | Mark Takano |
| Founded | 2008 |
| Ideology | LGBTQ rights |
| Seats in the House | 195 / 432 |
| Seats in the House Democratic Caucus | 195 / 212 |
| Seats in the House Republican Caucus | 0 / 220 |
| Seats in the United States Senate | 0 / 100 |
With 195 members, the Congressional Equality Caucus became the largest caucus during the 118th United States Congress session.
The mission of the caucus is to work for LGBTQ rights, the repeal of laws discriminatory against LGBTQ persons, the elimination of hate-motivated violence, and improved health and well-being for all persons, regardless of sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression.[4] The caucus serves as a resource for Members of Congress, their staffs, and the public on LGBTQ issues.[4] Unlike the Congressional Black Caucus, famous for admitting only black members, the LGBTQ+ Equality Caucus admits any member who is willing to advance LGBTQ rights, regardless of their sexual identity or orientation; it has historically been co-chaired by every openly-LGBTQ member of the House.
In February 2016, the caucus formed the Equality PAC to support candidates running for federal office who are LGBTQ or seek to advance LGBTQ rights. On March 14, 2016, the board of the Equality PAC voted to endorse Hillary Clinton in the 2016 Presidential election.[5]
During the 114th United States Congress, the caucus formed the Transgender Equality Task Force (TETF) and the LGBTQ+ Aging Issues Task Force. The TETF is currently chaired by Pramila Jayapal and Sara Jacobs and is committed to pushing for legislative and administrative action to ensure that transgender people are treated equally and with dignity and respect. The LGBTQ+ Aging Issues Task Force is currently chaired by Suzanne Bonamici and works to push for legislative and administrative action to protect the dignity and security of elderly LGBTQ people.[6]
The below table summarizes the number of caucus members by party over a number of legislative sessions; the drop in membership numbers in the 114th congress was predominantly due to this being the first year that caucus members were charged fees for their membership ($400 per member, $2,100 per vice chair, $7,500 per co-chair):[7]
The CEC structures to have all incumbent LGBT members as co-chairs. It was initially founded in 2008 under Tammy Baldwin and Barney Frank as co-chairs, who both departed the House in 2013.[16] Jared Polis was then the most senior LGBT member, and his office served as host for its website and congressional staff support alongside lead sponsorship of its marquee bill (the Employment Non-Discrimination Act) until his departure from the House in 2019.[17][18] These duties were taken up by David Cicilline, now the lead sponsor of the Equality Act.[19] In 2021, Cicilline was being described as the lead chair among the co-chairs through the end of the 117th Congress in January 2023.[20] Mark Pocan was then formally named as chair, stating the caucus had moved to a rotating system where the most senior co-chair would formally become the lead chair for a congressional term.[21] Mark Takano was then named as chair in 2025.[22]
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