The ascent of the belligerent businessman Donald Trump to the highest office in the United States has energized the country in unique ways.
In cases like the days of white supremacist-fueled violence in Charlottesville, Virginia, last year, it’s proven to have given toxic parts of American society a renewed excuse to come out further into the open than before.
On the other hand, however, the ascent of Trump to the presidency has given the opportunity for many to stage renewed defenses of the rights of the underprivileged.
One of those doing so is actress Cynthia Nixon, who has chosen to challenge current Democratic New York Governor Andrew Cuomo in this year’s Democratic primary election.
After considerable speculation that such is the aim she was heading towards, Nixon, who has acted in productions ranging from Sex and the City to NBC’s Hannibal, formally announced her intent to run for governor in a video posted to her Twitter timeline on Monday.
In the video, she explains the personal stake she has in the future of New York, telling how she’s lived there her entire life and is tired of “politicians who care more about headlines and power than they do about us” – a group implied to include current New York Governor Andrew Cuomo.
She poses the question in her announcement video:
‘Our leaders are letting us down. We are now the most unequal state in the entire country, with both incredible wealth and extreme poverty… How did we let this happen?’
Check it out below.
I love New York, and today I’m announcing my candidacy for governor. Join us: https://t.co/9DwsxWW8xX pic.twitter.com/kYTvx6GZiD
— Cynthia Nixon (@CynthiaNixon) March 19, 2018
Nixon has a history of advocating for progressive causes.
At a gala for the Human Rights Campaign held last month, she both lambasted the current state of the Democratic Party and called for change, saying:
‘In 2018, we don’t just need to elect more Democrats, we also need better Democrats.’
At that gala, she was presented with the LGBT advocacy organization’s “2018 Visibility Award.”
The Human Rights Campaign has already issued an endorsement of Governor Cuomo’s re-election bid, but that endorsement came before Nixon had made it clear she was going to make a run for New York state’s highest office.
The organization has also roundly praised Nixon, offering a statement reading:
‘Cynthia Nixon is a fearless and outspoken advocate for all LGBTQ people. Cynthia uses her talent and public platform to speak out for equality in this country and around the globe, and in the process, she is changing countless hearts and minds.’
Both candidates, of course, contrast from the president, who has demonized LGBT people through such means as trying to ban transgender people from serving in the U.S. Armed Forces.
That ban was eventually struck down, but not before the president made his opinions on the matter known, claiming transgender people to represent some kind of insurmountable burden for the military.
No matter which one of the two candidates wins the Democratic primary — and polls currently have Cuomo up but Nixon literally just announced her candidacy today — the nation seems to be heading towards a blue wave in the midterm elections later this year.
As one seeming indication of this incoming shift, Democrat Conor Lamb managed a victory in a Pennsylvania Congressional district recently that Trump had won by about 20 points.
Featured Image via Drew Angerer/ Getty Images
