Press Release From the Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Monday, Oct. 30, 2000

Contact: Sloan C. Wiesen
Phone: (202) 842-8679, ext. 310
Pager: (800) 759-8888, PIN 1169902
E-mail: swiesen@...

[Note to journalists: Representatives of the Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund
are available for pre- and post- election updates, commentary and analysis on
how openly gay and lesbian candidates are faring in local, state and national
races -- and what it all means for gay and straight Americans alike. Please
contact Sloan C. Wiesen for more information (see above).]

GAY AND LESBIAN VICTORY FUND RELEASES FULL LIST OF ENDORSED CANDIDATES FACING
ELECTION ON NOV. 7

39 Victory Fund Openly Gay, Lesbian and Bisexual Hopefuls From 17 States Seek
Local, State Legislative and Congressional Offices

WASHINGTON -- The Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund today released the complete
list of its endorsed openly gay, lesbian and bisexual candidates who are
vying for election on Nov. 7. The 39 Victory Fund-endorsed office seekers
hail from 17 states, and include Republicans, Democrats and independents
running for local, state and federal office.

"To secure equal rights for all Americans, it is essential to elect as many
of our community's out and outstanding candidates as we can on Nov. 7," said
Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund Executive Director Brian K. Bond. "Amidst all
the understandable focus on the presidential and other key races this year,
we have to make sure that our community's own candidates don't get lost in
the shuffle. They are pivotal to our struggle for equality. We must
contribute, we must volunteer and, of course, we must vote on Nov. 7."

The following are a few highlights of what is at stake on Nov. 7 for Victory
Fund hopefuls, followed by the complete current list of endorsed candidates:

* 39 openly gay, lesbian and bisexual candidates from 17 states;

* America's first openly gay U.S. Senate nominee of a major party, Ed
Flanagan, who is in a race made more challenging by the backlash against
civil unions in Vermont;

* Three critical U.S. House races, including the chance to help nurse
practitioner Gerrie Schipske become California's first openly gay or lesbian
member of Congress, and the first openly gay or lesbian House candidate to
defeat an incumbent;

* 20 state legislative races from 13 states -- including Michigan and
Georgia, which currently have no openly gay representation in their
legislatures;

* The chance to double the gay and lesbian community's open representation in
the California state Legislature; and

* Local races from coast to coast, including in Jesse Helms's home state of
North Carolina.

[Note: If you have trouble reading the following list (for example, if the
tabs don't line up properly and it is not clear which candidate goes with
which office or state), please contact Sloan C. Wiesen to receive a faxed
copy. Or, you can check out our Web site; it should be posted there tomorrow
or Wednesday.]

Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund Candidates for the General Election on Nov. 7,
2000:

FEDERAL RACES (4 races, 4 states):
OFFICE CANDIDATE STATE
U.S. Senate Ed Flanagan Vermont
U.S. House Jim Kolbe Arizona
U.S. House Gerrie Schipske California
U.S. House Tammy Baldwin Wisconsin

STATE LEGISLATIVE RACES (20 races, 13 states):
STATE CANDIDATE OFFICE
Arizona Steve May State House
California Sheila Kuehl State Senate
California Jackie Goldberg State Assembly
California Christine Kehoe State Assembly
Connecticut Patrick Flaherty State House
Connecticut Evelyn Mantilla State House
Georgia Karla Drenner State House
Illinois Larry McKeon State House
Maine Judy Powers State Senate
Maine Catherine Woodard State Senate
Massachusetts Cheryl Jacques State Senate
Massachusetts Jarrett Barrios State House
Michigan Chris Kolb State House
Minnesota Terrell Brown State Senate
Minnesota Scott Dibble State House
Nevada David Parks State Assembly
New Hampshire Rick Trombly State Senate
New Hampshire Nick Panagopolous State House
New York Tom Hroncich State Assembly
Rhode Island Mike Pisaturo State House

LOCAL RACES (15 races, 5 states):
STATE CANDIDATE OFFICE
California Toni Atkins San Diego City Council
California Robert Gomer Cathedral City, City Council
California Stephen Herman San Francisco Board of Education
California Rebecca Kaplan Oakland City Council
California Mark Leno San Francisco Board of Supervisors
California Patrick McGuire Santa Monica College Board of Trustees
California Gary Miller Robla School Board, Sacramento
California Juanita Owens San Francisco Board of Supervisors
California Greg Pettis Cathedral City, City Council
California Frank Tierney Coronado City Council
California Ken Yeager San Jose City Council
Illinois Tom Chiola Cook County Circuit Judge
Nevada Elizabeth Wachsman Clark County District Court Judge
North Carolina Julia Boseman New Hanover County Commission
Texas Margo Frasier Travis County Sheriff

To find out more about these candidates and how to make a difference in this
year's elections, please visit www.victoryfund.org -- or call (202) 842-8679
or (202)VICTORY.

The Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund is the only national organization whose sole
mission is to increase the number of outstanding openly gay and lesbian
public officials. As the nation's ninth largest nonconnected political
action committee, the Victory Fund has generated more than $2.5 million for
qualified openly gay and lesbian candidates at all levels of government. The
organization can be contacted on the Web at www.victoryfund.org or by calling
(202) 842-8679.