Two GOP Illinois Congressmen Back Equality Act

A pair of congressional Republicans up for re-election in blue-state Illinois have signed on as co-sponsors to the Equality Act, becoming the first members of the GOP to publicly support the comprehensive LGBT nondiscrimination bill.

Sen. Mark Kirk announced on Tuesday that he had signed on as the first Senate Republican co-sponsor of the pro-LGBT bill, telling BuzzFeed in a statement, "Discrimination on the basis of being gay is against the law in Illinois and should be against the law nationwide." Kirk is one of four Republican senators who have endorsed marriage equality, and has voted with Democrats and a handful of fair-minded Republicans when the Senate has considered legislation or amendments that allow same-sex couples to be treated equally under the law.

Kirk's announcement comes just days after his fellow Illinoisan, U.S. Rep. Bob Dold, became the first House Republican to back the Equality Act. Dold, who holds Kirk's former congressional seat has, like his predecessor, tried to cut a moderate or "independent" profile and occasionally breaks ranks with his more conservative colleagues when it comes to social issues.

As introduced in their respective chambers by Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) and Rep. David Cicilline (D-R.I.), the Equality Act would amend the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to ban discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity in employment, housing, credit and public accommodations.

The Human Rights Campaign issued a pair of statements praising both men for supporting the Equality Act.

"Senator Kirk has once again proven his leadership, by becoming the first Republican Senator to co-sponsor of the Equality Act," said HRC President Chad Griffin. "His support for the Equality Act sends a strong message that fairness and equality are bipartisan values. It also reflects the view of the overwhelming majority of all Americans who believe that everyone, including LGBT people, should be able to have a fair chance to earn a living, provide for their families, and live free from fear of discrimination." The statement commending Dold for his stance on the legislation was similar in scope and tone.

While it is unlikely that the Equality Act will pass intact through a Republican-controlled House and Senate - at least without substantial "religious freedom" amendment carving out special exemptions for those who oppose LGBT equality - Kirk and Dold's support is mutually beneficial for both politicians and for LGBT advocates.

For HRC and other LGBT organizations, it gives them a talking point that their desired legislation enjoys Republican support and can insulate them from critics' charges that the Equality Act is a nakedly partisan piece of legislation being pushed by congressional Democrats with the blessing of the White House. For Kirk and Dold, it gives them bipartisan credentials that will allow them to try and distance themselves from the more anti-LGBT voices within their party as part of a strategy to win over moderate voters in a Democratic-leaning state.

Kirk was first elected to the Senate in 2010 by 2 percentage points, and is expected to face a tough challenge from presumptive Democratic frontrunner, Rep. Tammy Duckworth, who, like Kirk, has a military background and hails from the vote-rich Chicago suburbs. Dold was first elected in 2010 to replace Kirk, and was defeated in 2012, but ran again for his old seat in 2014, whereupon he was re-elected to Congress. Dold represents a district in the northern suburbs of Chicago that favored President Obama by 17 points over Mitt Romney in the 2012 election, and could end up facing former Rep. Brad Schneider, the Democrat who defeated him in 2012 and whom he defeated in 2014, both times in very close contests.