Olympic gold medalist, author and recent ‘Masked Singer’ contestant Caitlyn Jenner recently announced that she will be running in the upcoming California gubernatorial race but has received a ‘hard pass’ from LGBTQ activists and advocates in the Golden State.
The election, likely in the fall, is the result of an effort to recall current Gov. Gavin Newsom.
Even though Jenner would be the first woman elected to the state’s highest office as well as the first transgender person to become governor of the state, LGBTQ folks are not flocking to her campaign.
Considering several controversial statements in the past, including her previous support of Donald Trump, Equality California, the state’s largest LGBTQ civil rights organization, made clear its opposition to her candidacy.
“Make no mistake: we can’t wait to elect a trans governor of California,” tweeted the organization. “But Caitlyn Jenner spent years telling the LGBTQ+ community to trust Donald Trump. We saw how that turned out. Now she wants us to trust her? Hard pass.”
After Trump banned transgender troops from serving in the military, attacked transgender students and even tried to allow homeless shelters to turn away trans women, @Caitlyn_Jenner STILL hired his former inner circle to run her campaign.
— Equality California (@eqca) April 23, 2021
We can’t let that happen. Governor @GavinNewsom is a pro-equality champion who has spent his career fighting for #LGBTQ+ civil rights and social justice.
He’s been there for us, time and time again. Now it’s our turn to be there for him. @StopRepRecall
— Equality California (@eqca) April 23, 2021
And it’s not just LGBTQ people giving Jenner’s political ambitions the cold shoulder.
TMZ reports that Jenner’s sons did not want her to run and are “embarrassed” by her candidacy. Jenner bros Brody, Brandon and Burt apparently don’t feel she’s qualified for the position and they strongly believe she shouldn’t be running for the governor’s mansion.
Caitlyn Jenner's Sons Embarrassed By Run For Governor https://t.co/cQkycctmpH
— TMZ (@TMZ) April 27, 2021
Additionally, the Kardashian clan has already announced they won’t campaign with Jenner due to a clash of political ideas plus hard feelings about Jenner’s divorce from Kris.
On the other side of the political spectrum, conservatives like Charlie Kirk are predictably not lining up behind Jenner either.
Charlie Kirk Cites 'Biological Standards' in Opposing Caitlyn Jenner's Run for Governor https://t.co/PwE8FEozA5
— Mediaite (@Mediaite) April 27, 2021
Jenner has already caught flack for apparently not understanding how district attorneys are elected after calling out “Gavin’s District Attorneys across California” in a tweet.
Since when does a Govenor control the district attorneys who are elected? You would think someone running for govenor would know that…and wasn't it a district attorney who didn't charge you for manslaughter when you killed someone?
— Stelenj (@stelenj) April 25, 2021