Bentley Hudgins is a Georgia born Japanese-American union member and organizer. A graduate of Mercer University, Bentley has spent the last decade fighting for Democracy and protecting civil and human rights. They have worked for organizations including the ACLU, the Georgia Budget and Policy Institute, and the New Georgia Project. As the Georgia State Director for the Human Rights Campaign, Bentley has led efforts to defend LGBTQ+ rights at the local, state and federal level, successfully stopping every anti-LGBTQ+ bill that Georgia Republicans introduced in 2024 and leading the largest advocacy day in state history in 2025. An experienced campaign strategist and organizer, Bentley has helped elect countless progressive and LGBTQ+ Democrats in Georgia, including Sen. RaShaun Kemp, the first openly gay man elected to the Georgia Senate. When elected in November, Bentley will make history as Georgia’s first openly nonbinary legislator. In the legislature, Bentley will continue the work they have been doing for the last decade: fighting to empower working families, safeguarding democracy, and protecting the civil and human rights of all Georgians.