Candace Gingrich (; born June 2, 1966) is an American

LGBT ' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity. The LGBT term ...

rights activist at the Human Rights Campaign. Candace is the half-sibling of former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich.Seelye, Katharine
Speaker's Sister Now Speaking Out
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'', March 6, 1995. Retrieved on February 29, 2020.

Biography

Candace Gingrich was born to Robert and Kathleen (Daugherty) Gingrich(September 25, 2003)
Kathleen Gingrich: Mother of former house speaker
''

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette The ''Pittsburgh Post-Gazette'', also known simply as the PG, is the largest newspaper serving metropolitan Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Descended from the ''Pittsburgh Gazette'', established in 1786 as the first newspaper published west of the Alle ...

'' on June 2, 1966. Gingrich attended high school at

Central Dauphin East High School Central Dauphin East High School is a large, suburban, public high school located in Harrisburg, Dauphin County, Pennsylvania. It is one of two high schools operated by the Central Dauphin School District. In the 2017–2018 school year, enrollmen ...

in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania,(April 20, 1996)
Newt and Sister Agree to Disagree
''

York Daily Record The ''York Daily Record'' is a newspaper and news publisher serving York, Pennsylvania, United States, and the surrounding region. Its news publications are the ''York Daily Record'' and ''York Sunday News''. The newspaper's circulation is 37,32 ...

'' ("The Central Dauphin East High School graduate is fighting to implement what ...") and graduated from

Indiana University of Pennsylvania Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP) is a public research university in Indiana County, Pennsylvania. As of fall 2021, the university enrolled 7,044 undergraduates and 1,865 postgraduates, for a total enrollment of 9,009 students. The univ ...

in 1989.Foreman, Chris (October 12, 2004)
Candace Gingrich argues gay rights are about equality
, '' Pittsburgh Tribune-Review''

Professional work

Although Gingrich's sexual orientation was publicly reported on as early as 1994,(November 24, 1994)
Gingrich Opts for Gay Tolerance
''Eugene Register Guard'' (Associated Press story) they first gained significant press attention in 1995 as a spokesperson for gay rights.May, A.L. (March 6, 1995)
Gingrich's lesbian half-sister speaks
'' Spartanburg Herald-Journal'' (Cox News Service story)(March 7, 1995)
Gingrich: I don't mix family and politics
'' Reading Eagle'' (Associated Press story) Isikoff, Michael (March 12, 1995)
Gingrich: Newt's Gay Sister Gets Out Front
''

Newsweek ''Newsweek'' is an American weekly online news magazine co-owned 50 percent each by Dev Pragad, its president and CEO, and Johnathan Davis, who has no operational role at ''Newsweek''. Founded as a weekly print magazine in 1933, it was widely ...

'' They served as the Human Rights Campaign's National Coming Out Project Spokesperson for 1995 and were named one of '' Esquires "Women We Love" and "Women of the Year" for ''

Ms. Ms. (American English) or Ms (British English; normally , but also , or when unstressed)''Oxford English Dictionary'' online, Ms, ''n.2''. Etymology: "An orthographic and phonetic blend of Mrs ''n.1'' and miss ''n.2'' Compare mizz ''n.'' The pr ...

'' magazine. They are currently the Senior Manager of the Human Rights Campaign's Youth & Campus Outreach, as well as the Human Rights Campaign's HRC University Internship Program coordinator.Wynne, Sharon Kennedy (June 23, 2005)
A Conversation with Candice Gingrich
''

St Petersburg Times The ''Tampa Bay Times'', previously named the ''St. Petersburg Times'' until 2011, is an American newspaper published in St. Petersburg, Florida, United States. It has won fourteen Pulitzer Prizes since 1964, and in 2009, won two in a singl ...

'' Their autobiography, ''Accidental Activist: A Personal and Political Memoir'', was released in 1996.Harlan, Megan (September 13, 1996)
The Accidental Activist: A Personal and Political Memoir (review)
''

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cu ...

Public appearances

Gingrich has guest-starred on the television sitcom '' Friends'' in January 1996, in which they officiated over a commitment ceremony for two recurring characters in the episode " The One With the Lesbian Wedding".Stewart, Richard (January 21, 1996)
'Friends' episode preempted due to lesbian wedding
'' Observer-Reporter'' (reprint of

Houston Chronicle The ''Houston Chronicle'' is the largest daily newspaper in Houston, Texas, United States. , it is the third-largest newspaper by Sunday circulation in the United States, behind only ''The New York Times'' and the ''Los Angeles Times''. With i ...

story) They also appeared on the debut of

Al Franken Alan Stuart Franken (born May 21, 1951) is an American comedian, politician, media personality, and author who served as a United States senator from Minnesota from 2009 to 2018. He gained fame as a writer and performer on the television comed ...

's TV program ''

Lateline ''Lateline'' was an Australian television news program which ran from 1990 until 2017. The program initially aired weeknights on ABC TV. In later years it was also broadcast internationally throughout Asia and the Pacific on the Australia Plu ...

'' in 1998. Shales, Tom (March 20, 1998)
Test run of 'lateline' sitcom attempts satire about media and politics
''

The Ledger ''The Ledger'' is a daily newspaper serving Lakeland, Florida, and the Polk County area. The paper was founded on August 22, 1924, as the ''Lakeland Evening Ledger''. In 1927, it bought its main competitor, the morning ''Lakeland Star-Telegram ...

'' Gingrich endorsed President

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the ...

in 2012, despite Newt Gingrich's candidacy for the

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

nomination.

Personal life

Gingrich married playwright Rebecca Jones in 2009. The Gingrich-Joneses lived in

Hyattsville, Maryland Hyattsville is a city in Prince George's County, Maryland, United States, and also a close, urban suburb of Washington, D.C. The population was 21,187 at the 2020 United States Census. History Before Europeans reached the area, the upper ...

, where Gingrich played rugby with the Washington Furies. The couple initiated their divorce in 2013. In 2017, Gingrich married

Kelly Cassidy Kelly Cassidy (born 1967/1968) is an American politician from Chicago. She is a Democrat and a member of the Illinois House of Representatives. She was appointed to represent the 14th district, on Chicago's North Side, in April 2011 following in ...

, a member of the Illinois House of Representatives. Gingrich is genderqueer and a lesbian and goes by they/them pronouns.

References

External links