At the Victory Institute’s Leadership Summit this past weekend, a panel of LGBTQ elected officials and candidates offered a candid look at what it takes to run for office—and to serve.
The summit opened with a Campaign 101 session, “Roadmap to Campaigning,” led by Itay Balely, Director of Training and Leadership Development at the LGBTQ+ Victory Institute. Balely outlined the fundamentals of launching and sustaining a viable campaign, grounding attendees in strategy before the weekend’s deeper discussions began.
The LGBTQ+ Victory Institute works to increase the number of LGBTQ+ people in public office by providing leadership development, trainings, and a professional network for LGBTQ+ leaders pursuing careers in the public sector. Its signature candidate and campaign trainings have helped thousands of LGBTQ+ candidates develop the skills to run for office. Alumni include U.S. Representatives Robert Garcia and Sarah McBride, Colorado Governor Jared Polis, Virginia State Senator Danica Roem, Montana State Representative Zooey Zephyr, and former Houston Mayor Annise Parker.
The Institute’s David Bohnett Leaders Fellowship provides outstanding LGBTQ+ elected and appointed officials with executive leadership training at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government. In addition, the organization maintains Out for America (outforamerica.org), a comprehensive resource identifying currently serving, openly LGBTQ+ elected officials across the United States at every level of government. The platform allows users to filter by region, level of office, sexual orientation, gender identity, race/ethnicity, and party affiliation—offering a clear picture of LGBTQ+ representation nationwide.
According to the Victory Institute, more than 46,000 additional LGBTQ+ people would need to be elected to public office to achieve full representation at all levels of government.
Looking ahead to 2026, the Victory Institute will host LGBTQ+ Candidate & Campaign Trainings in:
- Philadelphia, Pennsylvania — April 23–26, 2026, with an optional extended training for trans and gender-expansive participants
- Denver, Colorado — July 9–12, 2026, with an optional extended training for LGBTQ+ women
The deadline to apply is March 4, 2026. For more information, visit victoryinstitute.org/cc or email training@victoryinstitute.org.
Following the opening training session, the panel discussion brought the area’s newlyelected officials to the stage.
The conversation began with Seattle City Councilmember Alexis Mercedes Rinck reflecting on the early, uncertain days of her campaign. Before filing paperwork or hiring staff, she called her community. She reached out to elders, friends, and trusted supporters to tell them she was considering doing something “kind of crazy.” Their hesitation wasn’t about her qualifications. It was about her safety, her well-being, and the personal toll of public life. Those concerns forced her to weigh not just whether she could win, but whether she was prepared for the scrutiny and sacrifice. In the end, she committed to staying grounded—to doing the mental work necessary to campaign without losing herself.
Pierce County Executive Ryan Mello traced his preparation back to years of community organizing. From environmental advocacy to defending marriage equality in Washington state, his path was built on movement work. Training through the Victory Institute sharpened his skills, but the foundation was relational organizing—building networks, earning trust, and mobilizing people at scale. On the campaign trail, he said, the priorities narrow quickly: talk to voters and raise money. Everything else is secondary. Clear, measurable goals—and a team aligned around them—create stability in the chaos.
Seattle City Council President Joy Hollingsworth spoke about the logistical realities of running while managing the rest of life. During her campaign, she was balancing school, relationships, and IVF treatments. Discipline became essential. She scheduled her time tightly and constantly looked for ways to be more efficient. If a meeting could be a phone call, make it a phone call. If a conversation could happen quickly, don’t overcomplicate it. Efficiency wasn’t just about productivity; it was about survival. There was satisfaction in ending a day knowing she had made the greatest impact possible with the hours she had.
All three panelists emphasized the importance of support systems. Help doesn’t always look glamorous. It can mean someone hosting a small fundraiser in their living room, building a website, or bringing over dinner during a grueling week. Campaigning is sustained by community in both visible and invisible ways.
The discussion turned to representation and what happens when cameras are off. Mello described closed-door negotiations during his time on the Tacoma City Council, where values are tested in real time. In one round of labor negotiations, he insisted that gender-affirming and transgender-inclusive healthcare be treated as a non-negotiable benefit for city employees. Those decisions rarely make headlines, he noted, but they shape people’s lives. Who holds office matters most in the rooms the public never sees.
Rinck connected that point to broader challenges facing transgender communities. Even in cities with strong legal protections, she said, affordability can undermine inclusion. Seattle is experiencing an influx of trans people fleeing hostile legislation in other states, only to confront an extreme housing crisis. Legal rights on paper are not enough if people cannot afford to live safely.
Fundraising—a topic that often intimidates new candidates—was addressed head-on. Rinck described having to reframe her discomfort with money. Campaign funds are tools for communication: mailers, events, outreach. Mello echoed that reframing, reminding himself that donors were investing in the work he was prepared to do. Whether in rural areas or urban centers, the fundamentals remain the same: build relationships, expand your circle, and make the ask.
The emotional weight of public service also surfaced. Elected officials often absorb constituents’ trauma and crisis. Rinck described feeling like “the people’s therapist” at times. Her strategy is to be fully present in those moments, then intentionally release that energy later—changing clothes, resting, and finding ways to reset. Without boundaries, she warned, the work can become overwhelming.
When asked how to take the plunge into running, Hollingsworth offered a dose of realism: you will never feel completely ready. Confidence grows through preparation—watching other leaders, studying how they conduct meetings, and understanding the mechanics of governance—but discomfort never disappears entirely. Mello reinforced the importance of a clear, data-driven plan to anchor candidates amid the controlled chaos of a campaign.
Rinck closed with characteristic honesty. After years working in homelessness and human services, she grew frustrated watching elected officials avoid difficult decisions. At some point, she stopped asking why they wouldn’t act and started asking why she shouldn’t. That spark—part anger, part determination—propelled her from advocacy into candidacy.
Balely added, “2026 has been a stark reminder that the results of elections aren’t abstract. The people we elect to make decisions shape our daily lives. The LGBTQ+ Public Leadership Summit we held in Seattle not only celebrated strides towards better LGBTQ+ representation but paved the way for more LGBTQ+ leaders to get into the arena by leaving them with hard skills and a plan to take action. Having a seat at the table shifts the conversations in ways we cannot measure. Leading with community, like our summit in Seattle did, gets us one step closer to a fair and equitable world.”
At the Leadership Summit, the message was clear: running for office is demanding, deeply personal work. It requires community, discipline, resilience, and values that hold firm—even when no one is watching.
