INDIANAPOLIS -- Hoosiers gathered at the Indiana Statehouse Tuesday for a vigil for a civil rights pioneer whose milestone achievement in California impacted people around the world - including some here in central Indiana.
Harvey Milk, the first openly-gay elected official in California history, was assassinated on November 27, 1988.
Now, 40 years later, Indiana just elected its first openly gay state lawmaker. J.D. Ford won the District 29 Senate race in a rematch against Sen. Mike Delph.
READ | J.D. Ford elected Indiana's first openly gay lawmaker
He and Indianapolis City-County Councilor Zach Adamson shared what Harvey Milk's legacy means to them.
"It's important that LGBT people have a seat at the table and I think that was one of the most memorable key points of Harvey Milk's life and legacy," Adamson said.
In 2014, Ford lost to Delph by about 2,300 votes for the District 29 Senate seat.
"Harvey lost some of his elections with a slim margin, well, that's my story," Ford said. "That's a lot of folks' story. We all have to face adversity, pick ourselves back up and get back out there and I think that's part of what this is all about. And now we have a seat in our state government as well as our county government."
Ford will take the seat previously held by Mike Delph.
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