Some political leaders point to Lara’s unique security considerations as the state’s first publicly gay state-wide elected official. Former LGBTQ+ Victory Institute CEO Evan Lows, a former convention raiser admitted that security costs could reflect the era of threats to LGBTQ officials. “Well, I know, in this environment, the censorship and attacks are real, and I’m also affected by them, and a lot of people are affected by them, which is not unique to me,” Low said in ABC7. However, public officials still “need to make sure there are obvious reasons for any public funding.”
