Betsy Driver | |
---|---|
Mayor of Flemington, New Jersey | |
In office January 2, 2019 –January 3, 2023 | |
Preceded by | Phil Greiner |
Succeeded by | Marcia A. Karrow |
Town Councilor in Flemington,New Jersey | |
In office 2017–2019 | |
Personal details | |
Born | 1964 (age 59–60) Buffalo,New York,U.S. |
Political party | Democratic |
Betsy Driver (born 1964) is a former mayor of Flemington,New Jersey,and an advocate for intersex human rights and awareness. She is the first openly intersex person to be elected as a political officeholder in the United States. [1] [2]
Driver was born in Buffalo,New York,in 1964. [3] She was born with congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH). [4]
In her mid-30s,she began learning about intersex people and the surgeries she went through at eight months old. She has stated that she and her mother had been told that she was the only one to have this condition. [5]
Driver was once a journalist and segment producer for CBS News. [2] [3] After joining groups for women with CAH,in 2001,she cofounded Bodies Like Ours,an online community forum for those with intersex variations. [2] In 2003,Driver was appointed executive director of Bodies Like Ours. [6] Driver and Emi Koyama,were credited for starting Intersex Awareness Day,which is observed on October 26 and is internationally recognized. [3] [7]
When Driver decided to run for a town council seat in Flemington in 2017,she learned that opponents planned to make an issue of her sexuality. [2] She wrote an article about Intersex Awareness Day on her campaign Facebook page and the topic never became an issue during her campaign. [2] In 2017,Driver was elected to Flemington town council,where she served for two years before being elected as mayor. [2] [7] She is the first openly intersex elected official in the United States,and the second worldwide after Australian Tony Briffa. [3]
She was selected as a grand marshal for the 50th Pride Parade in Manhattan [7] and recognized by Heritage of Pride as a community hero in 2019. [2]
Driver became the mayor of Flemington,New Jersey,on January 2,2019 after defeating incumbent mayor Phil Greiner by just 26 votes in the November 2018 election. After 1 term,she lost re-election to former State Senator Marcia A. Karrow by just 94 votes in 2022. [8]
Driver has lived in Flemington since 2007 with her wife and their two sons. [2]
Flemington is a borough in and the county seat of Hunterdon County,in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Most of the borough is located in the Amwell Valley,a low-lying area of the Newark Basin,and the Raritan Valley,the South Branch of the Raritan River,which flows through the center of Flemington. Northwestern portions of the borough sit on the Hunterdon Plateau. As of the 2020 United States census,the borough's population was 4,876,its highest decennial count ever and an increase of 295 (+6.4%) from the 2010 census count of 4,581,which in turn reflected an increase of 381 (+9.1%) from the 4,200 counted in the 2000 census.
Raritan Township is a township in Hunterdon County,in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census,the township's population was 23,447,an increase of 1,262 (+5.7%) from the 2010 census count of 22,185,which in turn reflected an increase of 2,376 (+12.0%) from the 19,809 counted in the 2000 census. The township is located within the heart of the Amwell Valley and Raritan Valley regions,as the South Branch of the Raritan River flows through the center of the township. The northwestern portion of the township is located on the Hunterdon Plateau.
Michael J. Doherty is an American Republican Party politician who has served as the surrogate of Warren County,New Jersey since November 30,2022. He previously served in the New Jersey Senate representing the 23rd Legislative District. He was sworn into the State Senate on November 23,2009,having won the seat held by Marcia A. Karrow,who had earlier been selected by a party convention to succeed Leonard Lance after his election to the United States House of Representatives. Doherty served in the New Jersey General Assembly from 2002 to 2009.
Hunterdon Central Regional High School is a comprehensive,four-year public high school,and regional school district that serves students from five municipalities in east central Hunterdon County,in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Students from Delaware Township,East Amwell Township,Flemington,Raritan Township and Readington Township attend the school. It is the district's only school.
Marcia A. Karrow is an American politician affiliated with the Republican Party. She is currently serving as the mayor of Flemington,New Jersey. She previously served in the New Jersey State Senate representing the 23rd Legislative District from February 9,2009 to November 23,2009. She previously served for three years in the General Assembly representing the same district she represented in the Senate.
The NYC Pride March is an annual event celebrating the LGBTQ community in New York City. The largest pride parade in North America and among the largest pride events in the world,the NYC Pride March attracts tens of thousands of participants and millions of sidewalk spectators each June. The parade route through Lower Manhattan traverses south on Fifth Avenue,through Greenwich Village,passing the Stonewall National Monument,site of the June 1969 riots that launched the modern movement for LGBTQ+ rights.
Sandra Bolden Cunningham is an American Democratic Party politician,who served in the New Jersey State Senate from 2007 to 2024,where she represented the 31st Legislative District. She was sworn into office on November 8,2007. She is the widow of former Jersey City Mayor Glenn Cunningham,who died in 2004.
A general election was held in the U.S. state of New Jersey on November 3,2009. Primary elections were held on June 2. Most state positions were up in this election cycle,which includes all 80 seats in the New Jersey General Assembly,as well as Governor and Lieutenant Governor. In addition to the State Legislative elections,numerous county offices and freeholders in addition to municipal offices were up for election. There was one statewide ballot question. Some counties and municipalities may have had local ballot questions as well. Non-partisan local elections,some school board elections,and some fire district elections also happened throughout the year.
John DiMaio is an American Republican Party politician,who was selected on February 21,2009 to fill the New Jersey General Assembly seat for the 23rd legislative district vacated by Marcia A. Karrow,after Karrow filled the vacancy for the New Jersey Senate in the same district. He has been co-chair of the Republican Conference,alongside Nancy Munoz,since January 14,2020. He was elected Minority Leader of the General Assembly after Jon Bramnick was elected to the State Senate.
Brenda S. "Sue" Fulton is a former American government official and former military officer who has served as the assistant secretary of veterans affairs for public and intergovernmental affairs in the United States Department of Veterans Affairs. She commissioned in the United States Army as a signal officer,serving as both a platoon leader and company commander in Germany before receiving an honorable discharge at the rank of captain.
New York City has been described as the gay capital of the world and the central node of the LGBTQ+ sociopolitical ecosystem,and is home to one of the world's largest and most prominent LGBTQ+ populations. Brian Silverman,the author of Frommer's New York City from $90 a Day, wrote the city has "one of the world's largest,loudest,and most powerful LGBT communities",and "Gay and lesbian culture is as much a part of New York's basic identity as yellow cabs,high-rise buildings,and Broadway theatre". LGBT travel guide Queer in the World states,"The fabulosity of Gay New York is unrivaled on Earth,and queer culture seeps into every corner of its five boroughs". LGBT advocate and entertainer Madonna stated metaphorically,"Anyways,not only is New York City the best place in the world because of the queer people here. Let me tell you something,if you can make it here,then you must be queer."
Andrea Jenkins is an American politician,writer,performance artist,poet,and transgender activist. She is known for being the first Black openly transgender woman elected to public office in the United States,since January 2018 on the Minneapolis City Council and as the council's president from January 2022 to January 2024.
The following is a timeline of intersex history.
Intersex people in the United States have some of the same rights as other people,but with significant gaps,particularly in protection from non-consensual cosmetic medical interventions and violence,and protection from discrimination. Actions by intersex civil society organizations aim to eliminate harmful practices,promote social acceptance,and equality. In recent years,intersex activists have also secured some forms of legal recognition. Since April 11,2022 US Passports give the sex/gender options of male,female and X by self determination.
The following is a timeline of lesbian,gay,bisexual,and transgender (LGBT) history in the 21st century.
Fassett, Caroline (2020-10-14). "N.J. mayor will not resign amid backlash from anti-Trump Facebook post". nj.com. Retrieved 2024-04-20.