Mondaire Jones, One of 1st Black Gay Congressmen, Is Freshman Leader
Trudy Ring | Advocate | Nov. 19
Mondaire Jones, one of the first Black gay men elected to Congress, has been named freshman representative to House leadership in a unanimous vote by the freshman class.
Jones, a Democrat, this month won the U.S. House of Representatives seat from New York’s 17th Congressional District, located in the suburbs of New York City. He and fellow Democrat Ritchie Torres, an Afro-Latinx man elected in the neighboring 15th Congressional District in the Bronx, will be the first out members of the Black LGBTQ+ community to serve in Congress. They will be sworn in January 3.
Jones was elected to the leadership position by his colleagues Thursday. It’s the “most influential role available to a freshman member of Congress,” according to a press release from his team. He will meet weekly with House majority leadership and serve as a spokesman for the 15-person freshman class. He will also be a member of the powerful House Steering and Policy Committee, which makes recommendations to the speaker of the House regarding committee memberships and leadership and assists the Democratic caucus in policy development and implementation.
