The first openly transgender person voted onto a city council in New Hampshire will officially take her seat in Rochester following the election earlier this month.
Palana Belken, transgender justice organizer for the American Civil Liberties Union of New Hampshire, defeated incumbent city councilor and state rep. Sandra Keans to become one of three LGBTQ city councilors in Rochester, along with Jeremy Hutchinson, an incumbant and the also recently elected Chris Rice.
Reported Seacoast Online, “To some residents of Rochester, a longtime political bellwether community, Belken’s victory is a confirmation of the acceptance that exists within the Lilac City. Others, including Belken, say they see it as one of many reaffirming signs that Rochester’s renewal is growing and supporting energetic people and ideas along the way.”
On her campaign website palananh.com, Belken stated, “I am ready to have the conversations needed to make sure that a collective future is built where everyone in Rochester is included in its prosperity.”
“I didn’t see myself on city council. You know, it skews towards an older population, and I think it’s important to have a younger voice at the table,” Belken told WGME-TV 13, which went on to report:
“I wasn’t really thinking about that while I was running. I was just going out, knocking doors. I don’t think a lot of people knew that I was transgender. I didn’t run on that,” Belken said.
What she ran on was keeping property taxes affordable in the city, helping the homeless population and a plan to help small businesses that she says are vital to the community.
“The downtown, like really homegrown businesses that started and grew in Rochester,” Belken said. “I think we should be supporting them just as much as we are these bigger businesses.” …
“I can imagine if I was a transgender person running for office 10 years ago, it would have been a different response,” Belken said.
Belken says it speaks to how far the LGBTQ community has come, so much so that she says it’s now a non-issue in the state.
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