Press Release ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Victory Fund Candidate Elected to Redondo Beach [CA] School Board -->Zeke Zeidler Becomes the Nation's Ninth Openly Gay School Board Member Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund email: victoryf@aol.com 1012 14th Street NW, Suite 1000 Washington DC 20005 202/842-8679 (phone) 202/289-3863 (fax) WASHINGTON, DC -- 8 March 1995 -- Victory Fund candidate Zeke Zeidler has won his March 7 election to the Redondo Beach (CA) School Board, becoming the nation's ninth openly gay or lesbian school board member. Zeidler took first place in an eight- way race for two seats, beating a Christian Coalition-backed candidate by more than 2500 votes. Incumbent School Boardmember Tom Downs finished second. Although this was Zeidler's first campaign for office, he has worked on numerous campaigns including those of previous Victory Fund winners Jackie Goldberg (Los Angeles City Council, 1993) and Sheila Kuehl (California State Assembly, 1994). The Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund is a national donor network dedicated to increasing the number of qualified openly gay men and women in public office. "Zeke Zeidler is a perfect example of what the Victory Fund looks for in a candidate," says Deputy Director Kathleen DeBold. "He's extremely qualified for the office, has a long history of community service and pro-bono activism, and has a broad base of support in the district." Zeidler serves a staff attorney in dependency child service where he has represented more than 1,000 children over the past eight years. As President of the Redondo Beach Educational Foundation, he helped raise more than $30,000 for local schools, and as Co-Chair of the Educational Visions Subcommittee, he helped draft the mission statement for the school district. He has twice been honored by the Redondo Beach School District for outstanding service to students, and serves on the Los Angeles City Human Relations Committee. ------------------------------------------- [For more information about Zeke Zeidler, please contact Kathleen DeBold at 202-842-8679 or by e-mail at VICTORYF@aol.com.]