“It’s great to be back with the other HRC,” Clinton, whose maiden name is Rodham, told several hundred gay rights leaders from around the U.S. “There’s no one I’d rather share my initials with than all of you.”

Clinton and Biden both enjoy broad support from gay and lesbian voters and donors, as does Bernie Sanders, the Vermont senator who so far has offered the most robust challenge to Clinton. She retains an edge with the community over Biden both because of her strong record on gay rights and by virtue of having been on the campaign trail since the spring, said Steve Elmendorf, a gay Democratic strategist who backs her. ...