Colin Lovett is a problem solver.The gay 41-year-old Democratic candidate has an undergrad degree in mathematics, a masters in business administration, and a professional career spanning regulatory rate optimization and corporate pharmacy benefit management. Related Gay candidate Nate Douglas is running to take power from bully Ron DeSantis at the state house He was born on Disney property and had some choice words about Ron DeSantis war on Disney. With a knack for numbers, hes all about finding the most elegant solution to complicated problems. Your LGBTQ+ guide to Election 2024 Stay ahead of the 2024 Election with our newsletter that covers candidates, issues, and perspectives that matter. Subscribe to our Newsletter today Hell find plenty in the Missouri Legislature if hes elected the next state rep from District 100 in St. Louis. Lovett says Jefferson City is mired in dysfunction.While his CV may sound dry, the married girl dad brings passion rooted in Midwest values like hard work, devotion to family, and humility to both his long list of civic contributions and his candidacy.He can still rattle off the Boy Scouts creed in seconds flat.Lovett spoke from his home office in Ballwin, a suburb on the west side of St. Louis, in the same house where he listened to and learned from his grandfathers stories of fighting the good fight. LGBTQ Nation: You lost your race for the same seat youre running for two years ago against the same candidate, Rep. Philip Oehlerking, by less than 200 votes. Whats changed between then and now, and why do you think youre going to prevail in the rematch?Colin Lovett: Last time around, I was a first-time candidate, so you dont know what you dont know. Youre drinking from the fire hose, trying to learn how to be a good candidate. Youre building name recognition and ID throughout the district. A lot of the people that are voting have never heard your name. So we spent a ton of time and effort in that first cycle getting our name out there and making the introduction of who am I and why am I good for the district. We came that close, and weve basically not stopped campaigning since then.I come from the Harvey Milk school of politics of run, and if you dont succeed, run, and then run again. This next iteration, its been so exciting, because now as we go door to door, people will say, Oh yeah, I remember you. I voted for you in 22, and Im voting for you again. Or when we get to tell them how close this race was, theyre shocked. I had no idea that this race was that close. And we get the opportunity to describe how consequential these state legislature races are. Were only three seats away from breaking the Republican supermajority in the House. It was six seats in 2022. Of 26,500 registered voters, there were 10,000 people that didnt cast a vote in 2022, at least for the state rep race. And we only lost by 181. Weve had a lot of success in educating our voters on those things. Were going to bring them home this time.You havent mentioned your opponent. What about his performance in the last couple of years?So about my opponent, one of the hallmarks of my campaign is we have really tried to do a good job at telling our voters what Im going to bring to the district and what I want to do, and not disparaging and striking him down. But I will say, he has a record now, and he is pretty extreme on the issues. He voted alongside the Republican super-majority to make it more difficult for ballot initiatives to pass, to restrict reproductive freedom, access to health care. Hes been a big proponent of privatizing public education in the state. Its disguised under parental rights and freedom, but theyre going to gut public education dollars to put them into private religious and parochial schools and charter schools.Missourians will be voting in November on a ballot initiative called Amendment 3, which would enshrine the right to abortion in Missouris constitution. Is Donald Trump right that everything is working out fine for women in the aftermath of the Supreme Court overturning Roe v Wade?Absolutely not. Providers are so terrified of the draconian laws that have been put into effect that they wont provide the healthcare services women need, so people are forced to travel across state lines, and that leads to severe health complications up to and including death, and its just horrible. We need to make sure that we are giving people the freedom to make healthcare decisions about their own bodies, and that includes issues around pregnancy and healthcare around abortion, but also around our trans community and being able to make decisions about our bodies in that way, too. The government really just needs to stay the hell out of the way. Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley who memorably ran out of the Capitol on January 6 after fist-pumping to a crowd of election-denying protesters on his way in attended a rally a few weeks ago and conflated Amendment 3 with kids getting sex change operations in schools. Afterward, a spokesman confirmed that Hawley was making a false argument that reproductive health care encompasses transgender care. What do the tactics say about Hawleys character?I think at this point were starting to see Hawley, and not just him, but other candidates in our state, afraid that theyre going to lose their seats, and theyre going to say whatever they need to fear monger. And, yeah, its a complete lie. What are the details in Amendment 3 that hes making that connection with?Youll have to ask him.In July, a St. Louis circuit court judge slapped down the Republican Missouri Attorney General Andrew Baileys nefarious investigation into transgender childrens medicalrecords. Bailey claimed, based on false testimony provided by a notorious anti-trans activist, that Washington University in St. Louis systematically pressured or deceived parents and insurance providers into purchasing irreversible gender transition interventions. The implication was that the school and others associated with gender-affirming care are doing it for the money. With that road blocked, where do you think Baileys next battle will be in his culture war on trans people?If only I could predict the future, right? I mean, for one, I really would love to see our candidate for attorney general, Elad Gross, defeat Andrew Bailey and become an actually good attorney general, where we dont have these attacks lobbed on our trans kiddos and our trans community.I dont know where Baileys going to go next. I mean, there seems to be a lot of attempts to just completely antagonize the trans community in every way possible, from access to health care to being able to play sports in schools. What else could they go after? They could go after housing and public accommodations. I mean, there just seems to be an all-out war on the trans community.There was recently some excitement around a local gym and a person who identifies as trans not being able to use the facilities that they needed to. At the Department of Revenue, there was a form that you could access to be able to legally change your gender. All of a sudden, that form was gone from the website. It just seems like the leadership in the state, which right now is controlled by pretty extreme anti-trans people, are coming for whatever they can. Thats really not what Missourians are like. Its just what, unfortunately, we have elected in our leadership right now.Video just surfaced of failed anti-LGBTQ+ Missouri candidate for secretary of state Valentina Gomez dancing with the gays at a New Years Eve party last year in New York, to a DJ set from Drag Race alum Aquaria. She replied to one publication saying, its impossible to walk around New York City without running into a mentally ill f**got. Youre not a doctor, but how would you diagnose someone like Gomez?Well, in honor of it being Mean Girls Day, I would say she doesnt even go here (laughing). If you look at what the election results showed, she was widely unpopular, and its easy to get on camera and just shout a bunch of inflammatory nonsense, and she certainly got some attention, but the values of Missouri did not align with her candidacy. Maybe she should think about other things than running to serve the people of Missouri. Youre for low taxes, a balanced budget, Second Amendment rights, increased funding for police and religious freedom protections. How do you describe your politics, and have you ever voted Republican?I have never voted Republican, but if we really came down to a scenario where we had fascist leaders in the Democratic Party, I would consider voting for the right person rather than a party.I have an eight-year-old who is in public schools, and every time she goes to school, I worry about gun safety and school shootings. We need to enact some of the low-hanging fruit gun laws to be able to make our schools and public places safer. But were a Second Amendment state. We own guns. We like to be able to protect our households. In order to be pro-LGBTQ and equality, you dont have to be against balanced budgets and being smart with the money. We should be smart with our public tax dollars and try and keep taxes as low as possible while funding some of the critical public services that our government provides.Its really about having leadership there to be able to make those balanced, nuanced decisions and make sure that were being responsible, but also providing care and service to the people who need it the most. Thats one of the reasons government is there. You know, you can walk and chew gum at the same time.As you mentioned, the Missouri Legislature is overwhelmingly red, and theres probably zero chance either chamber will flip Democrat in this years election. One of your policy goals is pushing through the Missouri Non-Discrimination Act (MONA), which would bar discrimination in the state based on sexual orientation and gender identity and hasnt been taken up by Republicans. With little chance that bill and other legislation you support will pass, how do you view your role in Jefferson City if youre elected? When people are running for office, they have to align with their party on their messaging. Once you get elected and get into office, you find that you can work with those people. And I really look forward to using my ability to work with people from all walks of life, some that I agree with, some that I dont agree with on everything, to be able to make progress for Missourians.As it relates to MONA, you can be fired in Missouri for being gay or trans. You can be denied housing for those same reasons, too. MONA has been brought up in every legislative session since the year 2000 or 2001. In the last few years, weve gotten really close. The challenge is that if the Speaker of the House doesnt deem it to be something that can be taken up for a floor vote, it just dies. But weve progressively, throughout the years, gotten a little closer each time. Itll require a bipartisan effort and working together to make sure that we can get it teed up and across the finish line.I think its fair to call you super civically engaged. Youre running for office, youre president of your homeowners association, youve served on the boards of the LGBT Center of St. Louis and with the St. Louis Civic Orchestra and lots of other organizations. Who or what do you credit for your civic-mindedness? I caught the bug from my grandfather. He enlisted after Pearl Harbor was attacked, like, literally, the next day, and he was the head of the military police unit that guarded the Little Rock Nine in 1957 at Central High School. I was educated by him and his stories of fighting the good fight.The other thing Ill say about that is, for me, it was Harvey Milk. When I came out in my 20s, I was kind of oblivious to LGBT history. Then I saw the film Milk and I was just stunned at how much history there had been in our community, and I just threw myself into community service and jumped into every LGBT org that I could, to just do what I could to continue to fight. If youre not at the table, youre on the menu. We just saw that in the dog whistle from Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas in the Dobbs decision. Its an important reminder that weve come a long way, but we cant take it for granted.I interview a lot of LGBTQ+ candidates and electeds and not all of them advertise their identity the way you do. In particular, candidates will be forthcoming about their gender and sexuality in conversation, and happily accept strategic support and an endorsement from groups like the LGBTQ+ Victory Fund, but then its hard to find much evidence on the front door to their campaign their website that theyre a member of the same community. You, on the other hand, are front and center with your identity, with video of you and your husband walking your dogs through your neighborhood right on your splash page. Whats your calculation of the value of identity in your campaign, and why doesnt every LGBTQ+ candidate share it the way you do? I cant speak to everyone else and why they do or dont. I mean, its kind of like coming out. Everyone has to go through that journey on their own time and when its the most right for them. But to me, it was really important to be completely honest and transparent about that. Heres my family, heres my husband, heres our daughter. Its part of who I am.And so we put it on our literature. Its on my website. Its everywhere I go, and I dont lead with LGBT issues, but its ingrained in who I am as a person, and its certainly part of my history and advocacy and how I got involved. And it really goes back to that Harvey Milk thing, right? Come out, come out, wherever you are, and being present. And if they know us, they vote for us, 10 to one.Whats the single most important thing the world should do to address the climate crisis? Accept that its real.You were an Eagle Scout. What did membership in the Scouts teach you that youve brought to your public service and life in general, and is there a place for a single-sex group for kids like the Boy Scouts of America was when you were growing up in society today?Interesting question. Being an Eagle Scout, I think the first thing that always comes to mind for that is its like cheerful service with a smile, right? Its service to my community, doing the right thing. I mean, I could rattle off that a scout is trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean, and reverent (laughing). But its true, and you live those values, and you just incorporate it into what you do. I got to learn how to survive in the woods. That was certainly fun, all the way down to some Lord of the Flies situations (laughing), but, you know, trying not to burn down the woods. Those values shouldnt be exclusive to boys. The Girl Scouts equally have great leadership programs and skills, but theyre different organizations. I think that people who identify as male should be able to join Girl Scouts of America, and I think people who identify as females should be able to join formerly-known-as Boy Scouts of America. And everybody in between. Theyre just good programs. Would you support national mandatory service for young people in the military or some other form of public service of their choosing, like the Peace Corps or Teach for America?Maybe mandatory. Maybe not, but maybe incentivized. You know, its such a good experience and opportunity for people to serve their community. Ill be honest, I havent thought about it in depth, but maybe an exchange of service for benefit. That could be a start. Ill think about that. Youre a gun owner. Whats the gun and what do you use it for?We have guns to be able to protect our house if somebody breaks in. Ill just leave it at that. Dont break into my house.What can you tell us about your husband? How did you meet, and who proposed to whom?As so many couples do, we met online, and I proposed to him. It was funny, because I was planning on proposing in Florida, and he was on a work trip, so I was planning on bringing the ring down and all of that. Well, then come to find out his parents were also joining us on this trip, so I had to find a way to sneak away from the parents to be able to propose, and then I got in really big trouble because I didnt ask for permission ahead of time. But it was really great. We got the beachside proposal, and he said yes on the first ask.Donald Trump says hell be a dictator on day one if he wins the presidency a second time. Whats your plan for day one if you win your race in November? I will be making lots of phone calls. Unlike being President of the United States, being a state representative doesnt give me a lot of unilateral power. So its going to be understanding the makeup of the Missouri legislature, forging relationships with other state representatives and lawmakers to understand where we can make tangible progress, and finding the folks that I can work with to champion some of our legislative priorities and make sure we get stuff done.The last Missouri legislative session was one of the most dysfunctional, unproductive sessions that weve had to date, just because of all the infighting and the disagreement. I think we can be better than that.What are you most looking forward to if youre elected to represent the constituents of Missouri District 100?Yeah, I mean really, its doing the job.My goal goes back to that Boy Scout thing, right? Cheerful service with a smile doing whatever I can in the capacity of my office to be as good of a public servant as I can be. Your Vote is a step toward Equality for All Make sure youre ready to vote! 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