Byers leaving Legislature after breaking LGTBQ barrier

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(Developing: Will be be updated)

A trailblazer for the LGTBQ community, Democratic state Rep. Stephanie Byers decided not to seek a second term in the Kansas House after becoming the state’s first transgender lawmaker just two years ago.

Byers, the country’s first indigenous transgender legislator, withdrew her name from the ballot just before the noon deadline for candidates to file for office on Friday.

Byers was at the secretary of state’s office shortly before 11:30 to withdaw from the ballot for House District 86 in Wichita.

She revealed her intentions on Twitter, although her departure had been expected in recent weeks after the legislative session ended.

Two little known candidates – Democrat Silas Miller and Republican Rick Lindsey – have filed to run for the seat.

Byers told reporters that her decision to leave the Legislature was motivated by the need to care for her parents and the parents of her wife.

Byers’ parents live in Arizona, and her wife’s parents live in Texas.

She said her decision was not driven by the controversies over a transgender sports bill that she vigorously opposed, nor was it related to Republican state Rep. Cheryl Helmer’s remarks that she was uncomfortable sharing statehouse bathrooms with Byers.

“If anybody’s ever spent five minutes with me, they know I don’t run from a fight,” Byers told reporters.

“If anything, if I see a fire I run into it,” Byers said.

“I believe that the controversies that have come up have shown other people the mettle they are made of and, I think, have showcased quite well what it means to be trans in the state of Kansas.

“I will be continuing that fight.”

A former band and orchestra teacher at Wichita North High School, Byers retired from teaching in 2019 and decided to run for the Kansas House.

She won her 2020 general election with 55% of the vote over Republican state Rep. Cyndi Howerton.

Byers’ decision not to seek re-election leaves the country with seven transgender legislators in five states.

Danica Roem was the first openly transgender candidate to get elected to a state legislature when she won a seat in the Virginia House of Delegates in 2017.

Four years ago, the late Stephanie Mott sought a seat in the House that was left open when then-state Rep. Harold Lane retired.

Mott would have been the first transgender member of the Kansas Legislature, but she lost out in a precinct election.

“We are extremely sad Rep. Byers will not be running for re-election but very much respect her decision,” said Elliot Imse, spokesman for the LGBTQ Victory Fund.

Democratic state Rep. Brandon Woodard, one of the state’s first two LGTBQ legislators elected in 2018, praised Byers’ contributions to the Legislature

“Rep. Byers is a barrier-breaking, dynamic individual who will be desperately missed in Topeka,” Woodard said in a text message.

“She should be commended for her work in defeating the anti-trans athlete bill, and inspiring so many Kansans to be involved in the political process.

“Representation matters, and Stephanie proved that,” he said.

Byers said the voice of the LGBTQ community will not be diminished with her decision to leave the Kansas Legislature.

“We’ve made a different and we will continue to make a difference,” Byers said.

“Even though my presence may not be here at the statehouse, other LGBTQ people will be here,” Byers said.

“We are seeing more LGTBQ people running for office, even within the state of Kansas, than we have seen before,” she said.

“That is an inroad we have made and will continue to make,” she said. “There are 100,000 Kansans that identify somewhere in the LGBTQI letters.

“They need  to know that their voice will still be here,” she said. “It may not be mine, but there will be others.