Roll Call Profiles Ileana Ros-Lehtinen on Support of LGBTQ Rights

Roll Call has profiled Akin Gump senior advisor Ileana Ros-Lehtinen in the article “Why Ileana Ros-Lehtinen has hope for the GOP.” The Republican former Congresswoman joined the firm in January after nearly three decades on Capitol Hill.

The article discusses Ros-Lehtinen’s championing of LGBTQ and transgender rights, which for her is very personal since she has a transgender son. She insists, though, that her support for issues like marriage equality is a pragmatic one that tracks the “natural evolution” of the country. Despite the initial reluctance to adopt marriage equality as the norm, “people saw that the sun still went up the next morning,” she said.

Ros-Lehtinen said she is encouraged by the passage in the House of Representatives this year of the Equality Act, which seeks to protect LGBTQ Americans from discrimination. She is also hopeful that the Republican party is becoming “more tolerant and more accepting.” She recently took on the role of co-chair of Conservatives Against Discrimination, an advocacy campaign that aims to unite Republicans around LGBTQ rights.

Despite the challenges of her previous career, Ros-Lehtinen said she loved “every minute of serving in Congress.” She added, “And I love what I’m doing right now.”