Black Gay Mayor of Palm Springs to run for State Assembly!

Ron Oden is making it official today: He is not resigning as Mayor of Palm Springs. He is running for the 80th District California Assembly seat currently held by Republican Bonnie Garcia who was elected in 2002 and would be termed out in 2008. If elected, Ron Oden would be the first openly gay African American elected to statewide legislative office in California. MadProfessah knows of no other African American gay or lesbian inidividuals elected to a statewide legislative body. There have been African Americans elected to numerous legislative city or countywide bodies. Presumably, Oden will be asking for (and should receive) the endorsement of the Victory Fund, an organization which supports the election of LGBT officials, and which currently only has three endorsed candidates running in California.
This is very exciting news for people in the Coachella Valley (although maybe not as exciting as the news that Madonna will be performing at the Coachella Music Festival April 30th) and for progressive Californians. It can only be a good thing as more and more diversity enhances legislative deliberations in Sacramento. Madprofessah supported Ron Oden's race for Mayor of Palm Springs and fully intends to support his bid for the Assembly? All I need to know is: Where do we send the checks?