Fabian Nelson didn’t have a campaign platform when he announced his candidacy for Mississippi’s house of representatives. He knew, though, that his community’s needs would be central to his mission.
“When people are running for office, [they can be] very selfish and say: ‘Oh, I live here and this is what I need,’” he said. “But what you need is not necessarily the best thing for the community.”
Instead of deciding himself what would benefit his would-be constituents and campaigning on promises to fight for those things – the typical campaign model – Nelson flipped that process on its head. He said he surveyed people in district 66, which includes parts of Jackson, the state’s capital city, and towns in its surrounding area, going door-to-door and asking them what issues were most pressing and relevant to them. From there, Nelson developed his legislative priorities: Medicaid expansion, fully funding the Mississippi Adequate Education Program (MAEP), economic development and broadband expansion to bring high-speed internet access to every household.
And people responded – in August, Nelson won his district’s Democratic primary run-off with about 69% of the vote. Because there was no Republican primary, Nelson’s name was the only one on the ballot in November during the general election, making his win official.
Upon winning, Nelson made state history by becoming the first openly gay lawmaker. He said that this moment made him feel as if he were answering his calling. “For so long, I’ve wondered: ‘What is my purpose? What was I put here for?’ Now, for once in my life, I feel that that void has been filled and I know that I’m walking in my purpose.”
Before Nelson’s election, Mississippi was one of two states that had never elected an openly gay legislator (the other is Louisiana). Nelson, a real estate broker and father of four boys, said that he didn’t initially recognize the historic nature of his election.
“When I got into the race, I was just a guy that wanted to make my community better,” Nelson said. “I never talked about [my sexuality] because I didn’t see how that would make me a better legislator or a worse one. I didn’t realize it until after I was victorious in my runoff and then the media started calling.”
Nelson was surprised by the asks, many of which focused on him being the first gay elected official without acknowledging the work that it took for him to get there. “Can we talk about the work? Can we talk about the momentum?” he said, laughing.
But now he understands why his election is resonating with people. Nelson gets calls from people within the LGBTQ+ community across the country, offering words of support and encouragement. It’s the Mississippians, though, who touch him the most, some of whom were born in the state and moved away in adulthood because they felt they had no representation. With Nelson’s election, he said, they feel as if things may be changing.
“When I am hearing these stories and knowing that I’m an inspiration, being invited to speak on national stages, that makes me understand really what has happened, and it makes me proud of being able to be a changemaker,” he said.
Nelson does have a background in advocating for LGBTQ+ rights in the state, however. He is a board member of Capital City Pride, a civic organization that aims to support the needs of LGBTQ+ Mississippians, and co-chairs its advocacy committee. And he also serves on the Mississippi department of health’s HIV planning council. Still, Nelson reiterated: “I ran my campaign on the issues that we have in my district, and I’m staying true to these issues and true to my constituents.”
Last legislative session, state lawmakers introduced 31 anti-LGBTQ+ bills. All but one of the proposed bills were killed. And in February, lawmakers passed that lone bill, which bans gender-affirming care for transgender youth.
“Having somebody who is potentially directly impacted in the room is massive,” said McKenna Raney, the justice project attorney for the ACLU of Mississippi. Raney didn’t suggest that Nelson’s election will prevent other lawmakers from proposing anti-LGBTQ+ legislation in the future, but she hopes that his presence will be a sort of deterrent and that his background as an advocate for LGBTQ+ issues will be “really impactful”.
“Maybe [his being there will] bring some facts to bear that are going to make it a little bit harder to pass something,” she said. “You have to look somebody in the eye and say: ‘I’m willing to do this to you,’ which is harder.”
With his election, Nelson aims to help empower everyone to have a voice. “If there’s one single person that is being isolated, discriminated upon or being placed in a marginalized community,” he said, “it is my job to speak up for that person and to make sure that their rights are not compromised.”
• This article was amended on 2 December 2023 to remove references to Fabian Nelson holding a “statewide office”.
