This Married Lesbian Couple Is Running to Unseat Idaho’s Top Conservative Lawmakers
The two hope that even just seeing out queer candidates running will make a difference in Idaho.
A married lesbian couple is running for the Idaho state legislature as a team, one for the state’s House and one for its Senate.
The two moms are running as Democrats in November’s election.
Amanda Easley is running against Idaho House Majority Leader Jason Monks, and her wife, Karlie Easley, is challenging Idaho Senate Majority Leader Lori Den Hartog
The two are running as an out lesbian couple in a state with some of the nation’s strictest limits on LGBTQ+ people, LGBTQ Nation reports. Not only did Republican lawmakers try to request the Supreme Court overturn marriage equality, but it also has anti-trans laws affecting sports and bathrooms.
They’re running in District 22, which covers parts of Meridian and Nampa, which are west of the state’s capital, Boise.
Amanda nor Karlie told LGBTQ Nation they had planned to enter politics. However, after seeing the lack of Democrats running in their community, they decided to step in after being urged to do so by Idaho Women Forward.
“We said pretty much from the get-go that if the only thing we accomplish is normalizing a lesbian couple to a few folks that don’t realize they know any, then that’s a win,” Karlie told LGBTQ Nation. “There are a lot of ways to win.”
The couple told the outlet that many people they’ve met, including from the GOP, have been welcoming.
They said they’ve focused on topics like affordability, education and health care.
“I think we get a certain level of respect from people for being willing to just put it out there,” Amanda said.
She told Idaho News that having a state so controlled by one party makes those lawmakers less interested in serving their constituents.
“When politicians feel their seats are safe, listening becomes optional,” she said.
The two are trailing in fundraising, but they point out that their funding mostly comes from individuals.
“I think so many of these people who have seen us and said, ‘Oh my gosh, you’re giving us hope,’ they just might not have realized that we were gay, especially if it was Karlie,” who LGBTQ Nation reports is more femme-presenting.
“The way that I look at the world is that we’re only here because people were brave before, little bit by little,” Karlie said. “Women and people in our community have stood up for our rights continuously throughout history. So if us being brave by running as a couple is one more step in that right direction of equality, then hell yeah.”
