Mark Pocan Will Be 8th Openly Gay U.S. Rep. Ever

Mark Pocan turned 48 years old yesterday, the same day he won the Democratic primary in the 2nd Congressional district of Wisconsin last night. Pocan will take the place of Tammy Baldwin who represented the college town of Madison and its environs for 14 years in Congress as the first (and only) openly lesbian member of Congress. Baldwin is giving up her seat to run for open Wisconsin U.S. Senate seat.

Pocan will become only the 8th person in history to serve in Congress as an openly LGBT member of that body when it convenes on January 3, 2013. Other (non-incumbent) openly LGBT candidates hoping to join the U.S. House of Representatives this cycle are Mark Takano (CA-41), Krysten Sinema (AZ-9), Sean Patrick Maloney (NY-18), and Richard Tisei (MA-6). Incumbent U.S. Representatives David Cicilline (RI-1) and Jared Polis (CO-2) are running for re-election. Longtime incumbent Barney Frank (MA-05) is retiring.