Openly Gay Republican Carl DeMaio Faces Opposition From Both Sides

Carl DeMaio is one of three openly gay Republicans running for Congress this year, but he's the only one who has managed to make political adversaries of both social conservative and gay rights organizations, according to The Associated Press.

"It means you're right in the middle where the American people are," DeMaio said in a recent interview in regards to his critics on both sides, the AP reported. Running in a district almost evenly divided among Democrats, Republicans and independents, DeMaio gives the GOP one of its best chances for winning a Democratic-controlled seat.

"I'm not going to let their partisan politics deter me from what I see as the important role I can play, which is to be present in the Republican Party, to go to hard-to-win audiences, the social conservatives, and stand and say, 'I am openly gay, I am proud. And it shouldn't matter who I love. Let's talk about the issues that united us, not divide us,'" DeMaio said, according to the AP.

DeMaio generally avoids discussing his sexual orientation or other social issues, but he seems to have taken some lessons from his mayoral campaign when he was criticized for being too dismissive of their importance, the AP reported.

An early campaign ad this year featured DeMaio and his partner in a local LGBT pride parade, according to the AP. The advertisement caught the National Organization for Marriage's attention, which called DeMaio a "determined activist who will rip traditional values from the Republican Party."

DeMaio built his reputation with his work as a member of the San Diego City Council on pensions and other fiscal issues and he finished second in the primary and will face Peters in the fall, the AP reported.

"It's totally in opposition to Carl DeMaio, but I'll tell you, it's equally in opposition to what the Republican leadership did, and that is go into an open primary early for a candidate who doesn't support the platform," said Connie Mackey, president of the Family Research Council's PAC, according to the AP.

DeMaio was endorsed by the Log Cabin Republicans, and the group's executive director, Gregory T. Angelo, described DeMaio's candidacy as a "game-changer," the AP reported.

When asked if he ever considered being a Democrat, DeMaio replied: "No, I've always believed in personal freedom," according to the AP.

"It completely obliterates the narrative the Democrats have been riding for decades - that only members of the Democratic Party support LGBT rights and you're only hope of being elected as a gay individual to higher office is by being a Democrat," Angelo said, the AP reported.