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5 Produced by ST Content Studio |Seattle Pride%u2019s Executive Director Patti Hearn says, %u201cAs hate-fueled rhetoric continues to rise %u2014 and too many politicians either ignore it or cheer it on %u2014 electing leaders with integrity has never felt more urgent %u2026 [Randall%u2019s] voice has been vital %u2014 whether she%u2019s standing up for LGBTQIA+ rights, climate justice or reproductive freedom. The night Donald Trump was elected, she knew she had to step up. Despite being told a queer Latina couldn%u2019t win in her district, she launched a grassroots campaign, flipped a key seat and made history.%u201d%u201cRep. Randall is showing us what bold, valuesdriven leadership looks like,%u201d Hearn says. %u201cWe%u2019re proud to have her help lead this year%u2019s parade %u2014 because our march is far from over.%u201dRandall sees Pride as an opportunity for community celebration and a chance to be boldly and joyfully visible. %u201cI have constituents ask, %u2018Why gay pride?%u2019 Especially now under this administration, at a time when we see so many state legislatures introduce policies that attack our community, not everyone can be safely out or safely wave a rainbow flag,%u201d Randall says. %u201cThose of us who can have a little bit of responsibility to do it, so it becomes safer for other people.%u201dRandall enjoys celebrating Pride for months in a row at local celebrations around the 6th District from June through August, including Sequim and Gig Harbor.%u201c[The] state Legislature has been working really hard to protect LGBT folks to Trump-proof our state. What I am most worried about for Washingtonians is the impact of federal policy and budget on our neighbors,%u201d she says. %u201cThe Trump administration is trying to withhold federal funding and use every tool they can to punish states that affirm the humanity of LGBTQ neighbors. Washington is one of those states that%u2019s being targeted.%u201dWeekly, she sees parents who fled their home states and moved to the area to access gender-affirming care for their kids. %u201cI believe folks shouldn%u2019t have to move from Texas and Florida to Washington state to access health care,%u201d she says.Health care is part of what made Randall decide to run for office. She was working for the Planned Parenthood Federation of America and Action Fund, raising money for abortion protections, pro-abortion rights candidates and women%u2019s and LGBTQ+ health, at the time. %u201cI realized that I couldn%u2019t raise enough money to save all of the people I was fighting for,%u201d Randall says. %u201cI knew state legislature was a place we could push policy forward.%u201dRandall acknowledges that there is a lot to be scared, worried and angry about, but she also sees progress and finds joy. %u201cOne of the joys is that we finally have gender parity in the Equality Caucus,%u201d the LGBTQ+ members of Congress, she says. %u201cIt%u2019s the biggest it%u2019s ever been, and for the first time, there are just as many women members as men.%u201dHer message for the LGBTQ+ community%u2019s younger generation?%u201cI see you and celebrate you, and stand with you,%u201d Randall says. %u201cThese times are dark and scary, but our community has taught me that we can do amazing things when we work together, when we fight together, when we dream together. Together, we are going to get through this and build a brighter, safer, healthier, more equitable future for all of us.%u201dWhen she%u2019s not in Washington, D.C., Randall lives in Bremerton with her wife and dogs, where their Pride flag stays up year-round.Congresswoman Emily Randall, center, at the open house of the Tacoma District office in April 2025. (Courtesy of the office of Congresswoman Emily Randall)RISE AS ONERAVE AS ONEWe stand arm in arm, raise our collective voice,as clubs, as allies.In these colors, we find common groundand we rise and we rave, together.