STEVENSON, Wash. — A city councilor now running for mayor in the southwest Washington community of Stevenson faces a recall campaign and potential prosecution for her topless protest of the Trump administration's attacks on transgender rights .

More than a decade ago, Lucy Lauser met Stu Rasmussen, the former mayor of Silverton, Ore., and the first openly transgender mayor in the country. That was what first opened the door to local politics for Lauser.

"It kind of changed what I thought was possible for myself," Lauser recalled. "It was the first time I'd ever seen someone like me not presented as a monster or a joke, but as someone in a position of respect."

Lauser grew up in rural Washington, born to a conservative Christian family, she said.

"I had always instinctively associate

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