Local LGBT and HIV/AIDS organizations made their own statements after the Nov. 6 elections.
AIDS Foundation of Chicago (AFC) said of the election results, "We are a nonpartisan organization and endorse no political candidates or parties. But we also recognize that President Obama's re-election bodes well for the full implementation of the Affordable Care Act, which will in little more than a year give hundreds of millions of people living with HIV and other chronic illnesses access to comprehensive health care."
However, the organization also called on the chief executive and Congress "to act now to end the threat of automatic budget cuts, known as sequestration, which will impose steep funding reductions on programs vital to people with HIV or at risk of HIV. Our political leaders must adopt a balanced package of revenue increases and funding cuts that will avert debilitating funding cuts to safety net programs."
The organization also congratulated the "40 new members of the Illinois General Assembly who will take office in January, and we look forward to working with them over the coming months. Most importantly, the General Assembly must begin work immediately to implement national health care reform, including expanding Medicaid to an estimated 500,000 newly-eligible people."
AFC also applauded "all elected officials who have supported LGBT rights in the past and those who will join us in the ongoing fight for social justice."
The Civil Rights Agenda (TCRA) congratulated Sam Yingling on being the fourth out gay member of the state's General Assembly, joining Greg Harris, Deb Mell and Kelly Cassidy. TCRA Executive Director Anthony Martinez added, "This shows that constituents in Illinois are no longer concerned with the sexual orientation of their representative, but the capability of the individual. Mr. Yingling is a true representative of his constituents and the 62nd district will be well served by his leadership and representation."
Invisible to Invincible ("i2i")a local organization that affirms LGBTQQ Asians and Pacific Islanderscongratulated California's Mark Takano. "Takano is the first 'out' person of color ever elected to the U.S. Congress, and California's first out LGBTQ federal legislative representative," the group stated. "Prior to his political career, Takano was a public school teacher focusing on British literature for 23 years. Congratulations Representative Takano!"