In an editorial, Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop, a Democratic candidate for governor, takes state Senator Paul Sarlo (D-36) to task over recent comments about the trans community.
As Jersey City is the home of the largest LGBTQ community in the state of New Jersey, I wanted to take the chance to respond to State Senator Sarlo’s comments that in many ways misunderstand this past November election’s results.
Last week, state Senator Sarlo gave an interview to a TV show moderated by Steve Adubato that was both misguided and vile, in which he pointed to the LGBTQ community—and the trans community specifically—as a core reason that Democrats lost the November election to Donald Trump.
It’s disappointing when a Democrat leader in Trenton, with decades of experience, parrots the talking point of right-wing media, but his comments speak to a larger issue of misunderstanding around the election than just Senator Paul Sarlo’s comments.
The truth is Democrats didn’t lose the November election because of one single issue; in actuality, we lost the election because the public at large doesn’t believe that many elected Democrats have core beliefs. Senator Sarlo’s comments only reinforce that belief.
Just look at this past November election.
In many of the pressing presidential election issues, from corporate welfare to Israel and Gaza, to healthcare, to fracking, our nominee repeatedly changed positions that even core supporters had a hard time defending or understanding.
You can imagine that when her core supporters question whether she has solid core beliefs because of politically expedient changes of views, then why would anyone else believe?
That, right there, is the reason we lose elections. Voters look for sincerity, authenticity, consistency, and vision in elections, and often they are willing to overlook a difference in some policy positions if they believe their candidate has character.
The trans issue Senator Sarlo was NOT the reason we lost in November; it was all the issues I referenced prior that Democrats didn’t articulate a consistent vision for the future.
With regards to the trans community and Democratic principles overall: The Democratic Party was always the party that advocated for the most vulnerable among us and recognized that not everyone is born with the same opportunities or faces the same obstacles.
It is in this context that Senator Sarlo’s language is dangerous.
We’re on the brink of enduring four more years under a federal administration eager to roll back LGBTQ+ rights, especially those of transgender Americans.
This climate of hateful rhetoric emboldens the “anti-LGBTQ+ victimization,” including political scapegoating and bullying tied to sexual or gender identity, that significantly heightens suicide risks.
A nationwide survey by The Trevor Project, the nation’s leading suicide prevention organization for LGBTQ youth, found that more than one in 10 LGBTQ young people in the United States attempted suicide in 2023.
The survey, which included responses from 18,000 people aged 13 to 24, also revealed that over a third of LGBTQ youth (39%) seriously considered suicide in the past year, with that figure rising to 46% for transgender and nonbinary youth. Of all LGBTQ youth surveyed, 12% reported attempting suicide, yet half of those who sought mental health care could not access it.
This alone impacts residents throughout New Jersey, but beyond the current situation, changes to Medicare at the federal level would exacerbate struggles and would only lead to more tragedy around homelessness, depression, and suicide.
It is a dangerous situation and one that Trenton should not turn its back on because pundits say so.
The truth is straightforward: every New Jerseyan, including those who are transgender, belongs here and deserves to be seen for who they are. They deserve a fair shot at living their fullest, most authentic life without being turned into a culture-war sideshow.
Allowing our lawmakers to treat any group, whether it’s LGBTQ+ people, immigrants, or anyone else, as second-class citizens paves the way for a future riddled with division, prejudice, and hostility.
That not only leads to consistently losing elections because of a lack of core beliefs, but this kind of rhetoric corrodes our democracy, our communities, and our fundamental American values.
For decades, New Jersey has been a leader in protecting the most vulnerable among us, and we are at a moment in time when this is more important than ever. We don’t win elections by discarding moral convictions at the first whisper of a poll bump.
We win elections by articulating a vision that sees people for who they are and not only protects them but paves a way for them to have opportunities.
New Jersey needs leaders who have a core, unwavering commitment to the dignity and rights of every resident. We can’t pick and choose who’s worthy of respect based on political convenience.
Senator Sarlo should do better.
Steven Fulop
Jersey City mayor and Democratic candidate for governor
Supporting gender-affirming care for minors and biological males in women’s sports is unpopular and wrong. Democrats couldn’t bring themselves to say that.
Only cost them a few percentage points in swing states. No big deal.