Quinnie Pérez becomes first openly transgender person elected in Fla.

Quinnie Pérez on Nov. 3 made history when she became the first openly transgender woman elected to public office in Florida. Pérez, 32, won a seat on the Orange County Soil and Water Conservation District. She previously worked for Equality Florida, a statewide LGBTQ rights group, as a paid intern. Pérez on Tuesday during a virtual post-election briefing that Equality Florida organized noted anti-trans forces in the state ran $200 million worth of transphobic ads during this campaign cycle. Pérez raised around $6,000 for her campaign, but noted “we still defeated that rhetoric.” “Money doesn’t win, hate doesn’t win,” she said. “We’re just going to keep winning.” Pérez also said she ran for working people who are struggling in Florida. “They don’t want to hear any full-blown rhetoric about trans people, LGBTQ+ people,” she said.

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