Transgender Mayoral candidate Rosemary Ketchum stands on a closed down bridge in Wheeling Island on Friday, April 5, 2024, in Wheeling, W.Va. – When Rosemary Ketchum gets introduced as the first openly transgender person to win elective office in West Virginia, there's often a shocked look that comes across people's faces.
More than a century later, a group portrait hangs in Wheeling’s city hall. Ketchum is impossible to miss: Standing next to seven men in suits, she is wearing a red dress and black heels, and has platinum blonde hair. She stands out in meetings too, with her painted-red nails and laptop adorned with a Taylor Swift sticker.
She later served as associate director of the city's local National Alliance on Mental Illness chapter — a job that combined with her lived experience to shape the way she approaches public policy. Wheeling is the seat of Ohio County, where 38% of voters registered as Republicans in 2023, compared with 34% registered Democrats, according to state data. City council positions are nonpartisan.
“She even has people who are vitriolically hateful towards her calling her and saying, ‘There’s a lot near me that needs to be mowed — can you get that done?’" Ahmad said. “Which just goes to show, ‘I might fundamentally disagree with who you are as a person, but you’re effective.'”
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Source: SInow - 🏆 273. / 63 Read more »
Source: ABC7Chicago - 🏆 284. / 63 Read more »
Source: BreitbartNews - 🏆 610. / 51 Read more »
Source: BreitbartNews - 🏆 610. / 51 Read more »
Source: BreitbartNews - 🏆 610. / 51 Read more »
Source: truthout - 🏆 69. / 68 Read more »