Met Media
By Cheyenne DeChristopher
The boom that was Sen. Bernie Sanders political revolution ended like a monstrous bonfire, consuming too much fuel and burning itself out. yet, despite it’s resolution, the David and Goliath narrative remains prevalent in the minds of Sanders supporters. For supporter Misty Plowright, the love for these kinds of tales was kindled so much so that she decided to literally follow his example and run for national office.
Plowright is running as a Democrat for the congressional seat to represent Colorado’s Fifth District. This district in the center of the state includes Colorado Springs as well as suburbs like Cimarron, Hills and Fort Carson. Plowright’s opponent is Republican incumbent, Rep. Doug Lamborn, who’s held the seat for the past five terms.
While Plowright has no previous experience, nor university education, she plans to unseat Lamborn with her philosophy of respect and mutual understanding.
“Even when people disagree with me vehemently on certain issues or ideologically, I can reach them in one fashion or another and get them on my side,” Plowright said.
As a newcomer to the political world, Plowright must learn as she goes, as there is not much of an example for her to follow. Plowright is also one of two openly transgender people in the United States running for national office.
In running as not just a proud trans woman, but also as a person in a loving, polyamorous relationship, Plowright intends to bring visibility to these marginalized communities.
“My hope would be that someone else who is trans can see that it doesn’t have to prevent them from succeeding,” Plowright said.
Despite this message of acceptance, Dr. Michael J. McNeal from MSU Denver’s Department of Political Science worries that these identities will not be accepted in Plowrights conservative district.
“I don’t, however, know how amenable voters will be to her campaign, at least this go-around, particularly given prejudices that exist toward transgender individuals,” McNeal said.
He notes that if the demographics of Plowrights district changed into something more closely resembling liberal Denver’s Second District, she would have less of an uphill battle.
Mathlan Lumley, program assistant at the LGBTQ Student Resource Center at Auraria, is drawn to Plowright’s campaign because of the signi cance of what it represents.
“Bringing in alternative lifestyles is always important for visibility because there’s a lot of misconceptions around non-monogamy and polyamorous relationships. So, having someone who is in a respectable position could help dispel some of those misconceptions,” Lumely said.
Alhough Plowright’s campaign was picked up by the media because of her being a trans women in politics, she does not want to be pigeonholed into being just the LGBT candidate.
An issue incredibly important for Plowright is her commitment to veterans, as she herself served in the Army. …