Leigh Finke has made history as a Minnesota legislator. Elected in 2022 for the state’s House District 66A, she’s the first out transgender person to hold state-level public office in Minnesota. She fills an important role in representing her many constituents in the predominantly queer area of northern St. Paul.
Undeniably a trailblazer for progressives and LGBTQ+ people, for Republicans – especially those on the far-right – she’s been their bane. LGBTQ Nation talked with her in July about attacks she’s borne the brunt of as a result of deliberate misinterpretations of bills she’s sponsored. Finke has even received death threats due to her fearless advocacy for LGBTQ+ rights.
She also has a proud record under her belt, including helping to introduce the famous trans refugee bill that was later signed by Gov. Tim Walz (D), pushing for conversion therapy bans, and tirelessly advocating for progressive causes.
She attended this year’s recent Democratic National Convention, which received backlash for not featuring a single trans speaker – the first time no trans speaker has been included since 2012 – as well as scarcely discussing trans issues. The convention’s organizers released a statement late last month that sought to address what many felt was an act of negligence, which itself has been criticized for skirting around the issue.
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Much of the response consisted of deference to the Harris-Walz campaign, which has gotten attention in recent weeks after Walz was announced as Vice President Kamala Harris’ running mate, partly due to Walz’s progressive history on transgender issues.
LGBTQ Nation talked to Finke about her perspective on the DNC’s actions as a trans politician who attended the event, as well as how she reacted to Gov. Walz’s nomination for vice president.
LGBTQ Nation: With the DNC having not featured any trans speakers, along with only briefly mentioning trans issues, there are a lot of trans people wanting for answers. As a trans person who’s also a Democratic politician, do you have any insight as to why they went this route?
Rep. Leigh Finke: Yep, no. Okay. I mean, I don’t have insight into why the lineup of speakers was the lineup of speakers, but I do know that, yes, there were folks who definitely wished that there had been trans people speaking on the page.
Yeah, definitely a sentiment that I’ve seen for sure, too. But you don’t know any reason why, you know, you haven’t heard anything through the grapevine?
No. If I said anything, that would be pure speculation. I think that trans people would like to be able to speak for ourselves. I know that that’s true.
The DNC gave LGBTQ Nation a brief statement that left a lot of people wanting a better answer on why they did not feature trans speakers. And the statement was essentially just that they had thought that what they had at the event was sufficient enough, considering the side events. Do you have any insight as to why they might be hesitant to kind of go into more detail into anything?
No. I mean, I don’t know. I’m not a part of the folks who are making statements on behalf of the campaign. I know that they are. I think that the Harris-Walz ticket is truly a pro-trans ticket, right? Like, they will be the most trans-inclusive presidential administration if they get elected that we’ve ever seen.
I can only answer for myself, which is that I was hoping there would be trans folks who are a part of the main stage presentation, but I have no idea as to why they didn’t and why they are making that statement. I don’t have any insight on it.
What was it like as a trans lawmaker who went to the DNC?
It was very exciting to be there. I was a part of two panels during the week of events. I had an opportunity to talk about all of the work that we did in Minnesota to protect trans people. I had an opportunity to talk about what is coming ahead as a division for organizing for trans people in the United States and what that looks like. And I was really honored to be able to be there. I had lots of opportunities to just organize, to meet people. I got to see Governor Walz there, who I have a previous relationship with. So as a personal experience I thought it was quite rewarding to have an experience.
You mentioned some of the panels and additional side events, additional talks and parties that have really featured LGBTQ+ people. What’s your reaction and perspective to these additional events that gave queer people and trans people a much bigger focus?
I think that there was a huge number. I had never been to the DNC before. So this is all just my first and initial reaction to an event of this size, an event of this caliber. There were a huge number of events that were going on adjacent to the actual convention. I thought that they were diverse and they were available and they were accessible. I was a part of one that GLAAD put on. And I was a part of another one that was the LGBTQ caucus of the DNC.
There was just a huge amount going on. There were a lot of parties as well. I didn’t go to as many of those, I’m a bit of an early bird. But I do think that a lot of people were out, a lot of people were excited. You know, folks are really eager to see what Harris-Walz will do for our community going forward.
What was it like at those talks? You mentioned one organized by GLAAD, for instance. What was that one like?
So subject matter-wise, the first portion was them releasing, announcing, and discussing their Accelerating Acceptance report for 2023. They do really comprehensive excellent research called Accelerating Acceptance. So it was the release, the official release and discussion about data. And then there was a panel that I participated in myself, and one for Sarah Kate Ellis, the CEO of GLAAD.
And then Sam Park, first out gay elected Georgia representative in government. And I thought it was a really rich conversation. There were a lot of diverse experiences. There was a lot of engagement from the people in the world. I thought it was a really exciting thing to be part of. I had an opportunity to share some of the experience of passing some of the many laws that I passed to protect trans people in Minnesota, but I also talked about the backlash, right, the difficulties of people who are coming back at me and our community. So, you know, it was a very wide range of conversation.
What do you hope to see from the DNC, especially for LGBTQ+ issues going forward?
I would love to see more inclusion. I also would have liked to see someone from our community be a part of the main stage program. I think that inclusion is what matters for trans and queer people. It’s great to hear and even to know that folks are supportive, but it’s really important to be able to see that. So, my hope for the future of the DNC would be to see the full array of the Democratic base represented, and that includes trans people. So I had an opportunity to organize alongside those people who are putting on the DNC, and I know that their heart is there, and I know that they understand the importance of protecting our community. But outside of that building, folks don’t have that access and that knowledge, and they want to be able to see it, and that would be what I would hope to see.
To shift course a bit, you mentioned that you personally know Governor Tim Walz and in an interview with ABC News you referred to him as a friend of yours that has supported you both politically and in your transition. Any incidents of just him being really helpful?
Yeah, I mean Walz has been really supportive of my career in politics, which is only two years old. I met him on my campaign – we were running at the same time. He was re-elected the same year that I was elected and he just made a point to introduce himself. He introduced himself to my kids early on. He remembered them. He, like many Minnesota politicians, took a particular interest in my family and my past.
And he got into who is elected into the legislature, especially when I was working on the Trans Refuge Bill, when we passed each other he would just take a second and check in. He would say, hey, how’s it going? How are you feeling? And he’d go in.
When we finally had a particularly long and contentious committee hearing over the Trans Refuge Bill, he stopped by afterwards. He took a moment to be encouraging and took a moment to call out some of the things that actually happened in the committee hearing, making sure that at least letting me know that he did watch it and he was engaging. And he sent a text or two here and there as well, acknowledging the difficulty of the kind of work that was happening at the Capitol and showing you support for trans people, but also for myself as we did the work.
What was your reaction to Governor Walz becoming Kamala Harris’ Vice President pick for the upcoming election?
Yeah, I was extremely excited about it. I thought he was a great pick. As someone whose participation in politics is driven by the desire to organize for a better future for trans Americans, and by extension for everyone, I thought picking somebody who had been so clear and so morally forward in their support for trans people was extremely exciting.
I also just liked Walz. I think he’s really good at this. I think he’s really fun. It will be a great addition to the campaign as we are seeing, right? I mean, we’re seeing him everywhere and we’re seeing that for a reason. He is a great, joyful campaigner. And he will bring that to the White House and I have no doubt that he will be an asset really to this whole country, including to our movement.
And did you know anything about him gunning for VP before it was announced publicly?
No.
Governor Walz has been one of the most pro-trans governors in history. He has helped pass laws like the trans-refugee bill and signed executive orders protecting gender-affirming care and even guaranteed access to menstrual products for tranmasculine students. How do you think his record will come into play during his potential term as vice president?
I know that he would be a voice to continue those fights in the White House, in the federal government, in D.C. I know that he’s not going to turn his back on those kinds of wins, right? Like these are the kind of things that we did in Minnesota that as queer people, as advocates, as lawmakers, we want to see this good work exported to the federal level and he is a believer in this work. If he wasn’t, we would not have been able to see so much success in the state of Minnesota. He was there, he’s going to be there, he’s going to continue to carry that and I’m extremely excited about that.
How have Republicans in the state reacted to Minnesota politics getting national attention? And your Democratic colleagues?
Yeah. I mean, the Democratic landscape here – the DFL (Democratic Farmer-Labor) is what we call it – enthusiasm among Democrats in Minnesota is through the roof. People are very excited about having this opportunity to show themselves on the national stage, right? There was a little note in the paper yesterday that we just wrapped up our state fair and the DFL booth of the state fair made $558,000 for the campaign, which is three times more than they’ve ever made at the state fair before, right? It’s a huge enthusiasm. I feel it, my colleagues feel it, it’s real.
And then, on the other side, you know, I can’t tell you how the GOP feels about it. I know that there is a lot of hostility towards Tim Walz being expressed. I think that what we have seen in Minnesota is a great deal of success on the progressive and Democratic agenda. And I’m sure that they don’t love seeing us elevated to the national level as a result of that success. But you’ll have to ask them how that feels.
What can constituents do to ensure their elected representatives stand with LGBTQ+ people, especially those in regions where their representatives might not have a record of supporting the community?
It’s incredibly important for voters to make clear that they want and expect basic civil rights and humanity and dignity and healthcare access no matter where they live.
And no matter who their representatives are. No matter what they do, you hold their feet to the fire. You ask them questions. You get their answers and you make your vote based on that. If you hear something that is positive, you hold them to it after they’re elected, right? This is what it is to participate in a democracy like ours. We say what we believe when we run for office, and then people should be held to that. I think that, you know, being a part of the democratic process means learning and holding people to the words that they say. And I know that trans people do that.
Trans people vote at a rate higher than almost any other group in America. This is a part of that GLAAD data from Accelerating Acceptance. You can look that up. It’s very interesting, but there’s very few voting blocs who are participating more than trans people. So I know we’re doing a good job and we’ll continue to do that. And it’s a very exciting time.
This interview has been lightly edited for clarity and length.
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