Vanessa Joy is one of four trans candidates running for state House seats to fight against Ohio’s anti-LGBTQ+ legislation. Joy told News 5 Cleveland that she hadn’t known about this rule ― and it does not appear anywhere in Ohio’s 2024 candidate requirement guide. For trans candidates in particular, this law carries with it the possibility of being forcibly outed even if candidates have gone through a legal name change process. “In the trans community, our dead names are dead; there’s a reason it’s dead ― that is a dead person who is gone and buried,” Joy told a reporter at News 5 Cleveland. “In the trans community, our dead names are dead; there’s a reason it’s dead ― that is a dead person who is gone and buried.” - Democratic state House candidate Vanessa JoyJoy said this law would “undoubtedly” deter trans people from running for office.

Source: Huffington Post January 05, 2024 21:00 UTC