Allison Montgomery // Instagram
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Allison Montgomery is not afraid. The 32-year-old Democrat, Eagle Scout and devout Episcopalian was born and raised in Huntsville, Alabama, and on Tuesday she became Alabama’s first transgender legislator.
But she’s not interested in talking about herself, she said in a statement sent to Erin in the Morning on election night.
“I know the headlines tomorrow are gonna be provocative and catchy, but let’s focus on the most important part of this victory,” Montgomery wrote. “We showed that a truly grassroots campaign that stands on its policies and its principles has a real shot in Alabama … We the people know corporate interests use these issues to pit us against one another while they pick our pockets.”
While so many trans Americans fled red states, she stayed behind to fight for her home in Appalachia. She forged ahead with her campaign for state House District 25, even after the state GOP resorted to anti-trans attacks against her. And last night, Montgomery won her race.
Montgomery’s campaign unseated Republican state Rep. Phillip Rigsby, earning 12,456 votes (53.2%) while Rigsby secured 10,929 votes (46.7%). It’s a historic turnaround for the northern Alabama locale where Democrats didn’t field a candidate from 2010 to 2018, and where Rigsby won by 16 points in 2022. Democrats gained two seats Tuesday, and Montgomery’s was one of them, shrinking the GOP’s majority from 76–29 to 74–31.
“I’m going to work especially hard for those who hate me, because they deserve a better Alabama as much as anyone,” she continued. “And if you don’t believe me—just watch.”
“We can’t rely on lobbyists to hand us policies that will work for the people of this state, so we’re going to have to come together and work collectively for our common good.”
Montgomery ran a campaign that focused on fortifying public schools, expanding Medicaid, and increasing the minimum wage.
She is just one of a number of history-making LGBTQ candidates who secured elected office this week, many of whom are also trans people of faith. Washington’s Jaelynn Scott won, becoming the first Black, openly transgender woman elected to a state legislature. (She is an ordained Buddhist minister.) Michigan’s Joanna Whaley was also victorious, making her the first out trans woman elected to the legislature there. (She used to be a pastor at a megachurch.) Georgia’s Bentley Hudgins became the first out trans and nonbinary person elected to that General Assembly. Those are just a few of the candidates bringing trans rights and perspectives to statehouses across the country.Also in Alabama, geologist Terri Osborne ran for a state House seat, although her opponent, Republican Danielle Duggar in House District 96, won that race.
Last month, Montgomery and Osborne were targets of anti-trans political attacks. Montgomery’s opponent suggested she may be unfit for office because of her gender identity, and Alabama Republican Party Chairman Scott Stadthagen said Osborne and Montgomery suffer from “mental disorders” because they are trans.
Montgomery pulled no punches in response.
“Republican politicians always point to vague concerns about ‘the children’ when talking about women like myself, while Republican Rep. Brett Easterbrook gets arrested for soliciting sex with a minor,” Montgomery told the Alabama Political Reporter.“I wouldn’t want any of my nieces and nephews going to the State House with him there, and I wouldn’t want them going there with examples like Rep. Rigsby, either—men who look the other way when actual pedophiles are committing actual crimes, as long as they’re on the same team. The Republican Party keeps inviting these pedophiles into their ranks, so it’s unsurprising that they also invite adults to inspect young girls’ bodies through laws like their sports bans—which were supposed to … lower your electric bill? Something like that, I’m sure.”
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