Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.V.), one of the most conservative Democrats in the Senate, indicated he would not support a bill protecting LGBT communities without changes to give greater control to local officials. | Patrick Smith/Getty Images Congress Joe Manchin won’t support LGBTQ protection bill

Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin said on Monday that he will not support the Equality Act without changes to the legislation intended to enshrine federal protections for the LGBTQ community, leaving him as the only holdout among Senate Democrats and drawing fire from his home state Democrats.

The West Virginia senator, perhaps the most conservative Democrat in Congress, said that he believes the bill should allow more local control after talking to officials in his state. The bill extends federal protections to people on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.


"I strongly support equality for all people and do not tolerate discrimination of any kind. No one should be afraid of losing their job or losing their housing because of their sexual orientation," Manchin said. "I am not convinced that the Equality Act as written provides sufficient guidance to the local officials who will be responsible for implementing it, particularly with respect to students transitioning between genders in public schools."

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The West Virginia Democratic Party was unenthused by Manchin's remarks. In a statement, the party said "we simply cannot allow West Virginia to deny equality and protections for our LGBTQ community."

“If this past Legislative Session didn't prove that we need to fight against discrimination and hate even harder in West Virginia then I don't know what does,” the party said. “The LGBTQ community endured countless remarks of hate and ignorance while bills that were crafted to protect them never made it up for a vote. Senators Joe Manchin and [Republican West Virginia Sen.] Shelley Moore Capito need to lead by example and vote in support of The Equality Act.“

Manchin said he will continue working with the bill's leaders to write a version that he can support; he and Rep. Dan Lipinski (D-Ill.) are the only congressional Democrats that do not support the legislation. Democratic leaders unveiled the bill last week and it is expected to be considered by the House later this year.

The Republican Senate is unlikely to bring up the measure; Susan Collins of Maine is the only GOP co-sponsor. But if Democrats take back the Senate in the election next year, they may need Manchin's vote given the strong possibility that the chamber will remain narrowly divided.

