There’s nothing quite like a second chance in politics. A two-term gay incumbent used his to win another term on Tuesday, while a gay-friendly school board candidate fell after some transphobic campaigning.
Lance Rhodes (top photo) launched his re-election campaign nearly a year ago and picked up some early LGBT endorsements. But it wasn’t enough for him to win a third term on Nov. 8. He took nearly 50 percent of the vote, which forced him into a runoff.
That took place Tuesday and Rhodes captured 52 percent to challenger Karen Rene’s 48 percent.
In a runoff for the District 2 seat on the Atlanta Board of Education, gay-friendly Angela Brown – who topped a field of five candidates in November – lost to Byron Amos (second photo), 54 percent to 46 percent.
The school board campaign took a transphobic turn in its closing days when a direct mail effort attacking Brown on several issues, including allegations that she wanted students to “cross dress.”
The flyer did not indicate who produced or paid for it, though Georgia Equality criticized Amos for it. Amos denied that his campaign played a role in the mailer.
The recent campaign cycle included five LGBT candidates. Just Rhodes and Kecia Cunningham won their races, while Ken DeLeon in East Point, Alan Tart in Milton and Pam Miller in Savannah lost.
