Marni von Wilpert’s career has spanned the Peace Corps, courtrooms, Congress, and San Diego City Hall. She delivered medicine to children living with HIV, founded a Mississippi legal clinic combating LGBTQ+ discrimination, helped write the PRO Act, and prosecuted wage theft, price gouging, and polluters.
Since 2020, the bisexual Democrat has represented District 5 on the San Diego City Council. Her work there has included gun safety legislation, housing assistance for educators, higher wages, and work on the opioid crisis.
This year, von Wilpert entered the race for California’s 48th Congressional District, spanning parts of northern San Diego County and the Palm Springs area. She hopes to become the first openly LGBTQ+ member of Congress to represent those communities.
Her campaign followed a deeply personal reckoning. Early this year, von Wilpert was diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer. With medical care and support from her fiancée, Sarah, she says she is now cancer-free.
“I know personally that health care can save your life,” von Wilpert says. The experience strengthened her commitment to making care affordable and accessible.
For von Wilpert, seeking federal office is another version of the work that has defined her career by advocating for people she believes institutions have overlooked. @marni_von_wilpert
