Oakland County's gay boss inspired as president signs marriage equality law
As a teen, he got busy in student politics in suburban Detroit and after graduation grew active in local politics. But Dave Coulter said he never thought back then that he could hold public office — not as a gay man.
On Wednesday, Coulter was back in Michigan, and back at work as the Oakland County executive, after a one-day jaunt to Washington, D.C., where he watched history being made on behalf of LGBTQ Americans. Coulter was among thousands invited to the White House lawn Tuesday to watch President Joe Biden sign the Respect for Marriage Act.
The bipartisan act capped decades of political toil to put all Americans on equal footing for marriage. Watching Biden affix his signature meant a lot in two ways, Coulter said.
"On one hand, it was personal for me. I clearly understood the historic nature of the moment. ... But I also saw this in terms of helping people understand that we have a rich, diverse county. I feel this act represents something not just for our LGBTQ residents, it's also for every person who ever felt held back by who they are or what they look like," Coulter said.
The nation's sanguine shift in how it views gays and other historically marginalized communities mirrors the arc of Coulter's career: a rise through politics that no one could've predicted when he walked the halls of Bishop Gallagher High School, which closed in 2002 after 40 years in Harper Woods. Coulter found his first big success in politics in 2002. After years of working in the nonprofit sector, he was elected to represent Ferndale on the Oakland County Board of Commissioners. His city had gained a reputation as Detroit's most gay-friendly suburb. In 2011, he was elected mayor of Ferndale. And in 2019, Oakland's county commissioners appointed him to be the Oakland County executive, filling the remaining year in the term of L. Brooks Patterson, who had just died.
When he was appointed, several Republicans said they approved of Coulter because years earlier as a commissioner he'd been easy to work with, receptive to their concerns, reaching across the party aisle to get things done. Still, none crossed back to vote for him. But the Democrats had gained a one-vote margin, allowing Coulter, a Democrat, to succeed Patterson, a GOP stalwart. In 2022, reflecting Oakland County's shift in the last two decades from red to blue, Coulter was easily elected to a four-year term as Oakland County's top elected official. Through his rise in politics, Coulter has always been openly gay. Still, from the start, he was more inclined to talk on the campaign trail about policies he favored than he was about his sexual orientation.
This week's trip was Coulter's third visit to the White House this year. His first, in June, was for the presidential signing of the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, the first legislation regulating guns in decades.
"I think I was invited to that because of Oxford, frankly," Coulter said, referring to the nationwide attention focused on Oakland County since last year's mass shooting at Oxford High School. He was invited again to the White House in October, to meet with Vice President Kamala Harris and Biden's cabinet secretaries — including former Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm, now secretary of transportation. That gathering, called "Building a Better Michigan," aimed to find the best ways for the state to use its share of federal pandemic aid.
With so many quick trips, "I'm getting some frequent flyer miles," Coulter quipped.
Contact Bill Laitner: blaitner@freepress.com
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Oakland County's boss watches Biden sign historic bill for all LGBTQs
