US Rep. Michael Michaud Comes Out

Via Chris Geidner on Buzzfeed:

Rep. Mike Michaud, a Maine Democrat, told residents of the state he is hoping to govern that he is gay on Monday in op-eds running in newspapers across the state. Running for governor in 2014, Michaud told residents he “wasn’t surprised to learn about the whisper campaigns, insinuations and push-polls some of the people opposed to [his] candidacy have been using to raise questions about [his] personal life.” Then, he got specific, writing, “They want people to question whether I am gay.” And, he responded, “Allow me to save them the trouble with a simple, honest answer: ‘Yes I am. But why should it matter?’ That may seem like a big announcement to some people. For me, it’s just a part of who I am, as much as being a third-generation mill worker or a lifelong Mainer. One thing I do know is that it has nothing to do with my ability to lead the state of Maine.”

Read Michaud’s full essay here.