Our endorsement for the 7th Congressional District of Washington is Pramila Jayapal! The only incumbent in our endorsement guide, Rep. Jayapal has been one of the biggest champions to date for Trans and Queer rights (as well as progressive policies) in the US House of Representatives. With LGBTQIA+ protections being undermined left and right under President Trump, she has been defiantly standing up against it all.

Although most of our 2026 endorsement guide has been oriented around progressive challengers shaking up the establishment and status quo, we also want to show that we don’t have a complete vendetta against incumbents this election cycle!

Rep. Jayapal is running for reelection this year, Now that she is reaching her tenth year in office, we wanted to highlight some of the vital work she has done as a progressive legislator and LGBTQIA+ advocate in the US House of Representatives. 

In the time since she entered office, Rep. Jayapal has become the lead House sponsor for the Medicare for All Act and the Transgender Bill of Rights, the co-chair of the Congressional Equality Caucus’s Transgender Equality Task Force, and the co-chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus. She also consistently opposes US military support for Israel (voting with half of the House Democrats to cut $3.3 billion in military aid), and she has not accepted donations from AIPAC. 

Rep. Jayapal told The Advocate in June that she believes the Democratic Party needs to be fully resolute in its support of LGBTQIA+ people, particularly given the attacks on Transgender rights all across the country. At home, she has been involved with campaigns to protect LGBTQIA+ rights. At the No Hate in WA State campaign launch party in June, Rep. Jayapal spoke to the importance of protecting Trans and Queer youth at school and in sports. 

At her last Seattle town hall in January, she did not mince words about how much Trump has undermined the safety of marginalized people and the integrity of US democracy. “This moment calls for us to do everything we can to protect our democracy, because they are trying to steal it from under our eyes,” she said. 

Although her track record of endorsing other progressive candidates hasn’t always been perfect (she endorsed Mayor Bruce Harrell over Katie Wilson, only to change it to a dual endorsement after the primary), Rep. Jayapal has been on point with her critiques of and policy remedies for our broken system. With (hopefully just) two more years of Trump in office, we need an unabashed LGBTQIA+ ally and progressive voice in Washington, DC.

Vote Jayapal.