Meet the four new LGBTQ+ members of the U.S. House

Four new out LGBTQ+ legislators will eventually be sworn into the U.S. House, just as soon as Republicans can stop infighting and pick a new Speaker.

The freshmen legislators — Robert Garcia (D-CA), Becca Balint (D-VT), Eric Sorensen (D-IL), and George Santos (R-NY) — signal a shift towards equality in the lower congressional chamber, even as it falls under Republican control.

Garcia not only made history by becoming the first LGBTQ+ immigrant and the first Peruvian-American in Congress, but he was also elected to serve as the House Freshman Class President of the 118th U.S. Congress, making him the first-ever LGBTQ+ person ever to serve in the role.

While was also the youngest and first out LGBTQ+ person elected as mayor of Long Beach, California (a position he served in from 2014 to 2022), he was actually registered as a Republican until 2007. During his time as mayor, he worked with businesses to reduce their environmental impacts, filled vacancies on citizen commissions with diverse and female members, and worked to improve local infrastructure as well as financial opportunities for local artists and home-based business owners.

In 2014, he also visited Peru and Honduras in partnership with the Victory Institute and the U.S. State Department on missions to help expand international LGBTQ+ rights.

“We’re going to work really hard to not just change our own Progressive Caucus, but our Hispanic Caucus, and try to bring a new sense of urgency. We do not want to wait anymore [for change],” Garcia said, according to The Washington Post.