Buttigieg (openly gay, a Democrat and the former Mayor of South Bend) took office as the 19th Secretary of Transportation on 3 February 2021. His nomination was confirmed on February 2, 2021 by a vote of 86–13, making him the first openly LGBT Cabinet member in U.S. history. Nominated at age 38, he is also the youngest Cabinet secretary in the Biden administration and the youngest person ever to serve as Secretary of Transportation. In 2022, to prevent the loss of the right to same-sex marriage, the United States House of Representatives passed the Respect for Marriage Act which would nullify DOMA and protect both same-sex and interracial marriages. In July 2022, the bill passed 267–157, with 47 Republican representatives joining the Democrats. In December 2022, the United States Senate passed the bill 61–36, and the House again voted 258–169 to pass it. Historiography Scholars of U.S. LGBT history Nan Alamilla Boyd Michael Bronski Julio Capó, Jr. Margot Canaday David Carter Eric Cervini George Chauncey John D'Emilio Madeline Davis St. Sukie de la Croix Jim Downs Martin Duberman Lisa Duggan Lillian Faderman Jules Gill-Peterson Lauren Jae Gutterman Chad Heap Emily K. Hobson John Howard John Ibson David K. Johnson Jonathan Ned Katz Elizabeth Lapovsky Kennedy James Kirchick Regina Kunzel Eithne Luibhéid Jen Manion Esther Newton Horacio Roque Ramírez Will Roscoe Leila Rupp Clare Sears Emily Skidmore Siobhan Somerville C. Riley Snorton Dean Spade Marc Stein Susan Stryker Stuart Timmons Timothy Winter-Stewart See also Biphobia Bisexuality in the United States History of gay men in the United States History of homosexuality in American film History of lesbianism in the United States History of transgender people in the United States Homophobia Lesbophobia LGBT demographics of the United States LGBT historic places in the United States List of LGBT actions in the United States prior to the Stonewall riots History by state LGBT history in California LGBT history in Florida LGBT history in Hawaii LGBT history in Illinois LGBT history in Louisiana LGBT history in Michigan LGBT history in New York LGBT history in North Dakota LGBT history in South Dakota LGBT history in Texas Explanatory notes References Further reading Includes coverage of the lavender scare. External links Timeline: Milestones in the American Gay Rights Movement at PBS LGBT history by country