West Virginia elects first transgender public official

(WTOV/NBC News) History was made in Wheeling, West Virginia Tuesday night when Rosemary Ketchum became the state’s first elected transgender person.

Ketchum won a tight race, narrowly defeating Peggy Niebergall by 15 votes.

She is now one of only 27 transgender elected officials in the United States.

Ketchum says she didn’t campaign on the fact that she is a transgender woman because she wanted to focus on issues like homelessness and the opioid epidemic.

But she believes her victory shows just how tolerant the friendly city is becoming.

“Every day in the city of Wheeling, I see that those assorted ideas about the state of West Virginia — that we’re not progressive enough, or that we’re not friendly enough, or that we’re not ready or prepared for the future. Every single day I see those things are invalidated,” she said.

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