Nashville mayoral candidate and former Congressman Bob Clement attended a reception for the Tennessee Equality Project (TEP) at Tribe on Monday, Feb. 19.

The reception was for equality advocates attending Advancing Equality Day on the Hill and several lawmakers were invited.

Also in attendance were Representative Sherry Jones (D-Antioch) and Rep. Rob Briley (D-Nashville). Rob Briley is the brother of David Briley, a Metro councilman since 1999 and also a candidate for mayor.

Ben Hall, communications director for the Clement for Mayor Campaign, said the former Congressman rearranged his schedule to attend.

“He will be a very inclusive mayor who will celebrate diversity in Nashville,” Hall said. “He was excited to be able to meet and talk with members of Nashville’s GLBT community.

Hall added that Clement was “very interested in the welfare of the GLBT community.”

“As mayor he will be very open, accessible and inclusive,” Hall said. “Nashville is a growing and cosmopolitan city.”

Christopher Sanders, president of TEP, said he was very happy to see a mayoral candidate reach out to the GLBT community. 

“We’re pleased that Bob Clement came to our reception and listened to our concerns as voters,” said Sanders. “I hope all the candidates for Mayor of Nashville will take the opportunity to engage our community.”

Clement was elected to fill the vacant 5th District seat in the U.S. House of Representatives in January 1988. During his eight terms in Congress, Clement served on the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, where he was the ranking Democrat on the Railroad Subcommittee and a member of the Highways and Transit Subcommittee. Additionally, he served on the Budget Committee. Clement co-founded the Education Caucus in the U.S. Congress, where he served as co-chairman. He was also a member of the Exploited and Missing Children's Caucus, the Real Estate Caucus, the Travel and Tourism Caucus and the TVA Caucus.

Candidates in the mayor’s race include Clement, Vice Mayor Howard Gentry, Councilman-At-Large Buck Dozier, Metro legal Director Karl Dean, David Briley and Dave Pelton.