Grindr To Host First-Ever Official Party For White House Correspondents’ Dinner Weekend

Planning for Washington’s so-called “nerd prom” is back in full swing, the guest list has just gotten a little gayer: Grindr is set to host its first-ever official party tied to the White House Correspondents’ Dinner weekend.

The event will take place on April 24 in Washington, D.C. – the night before the main dinner – as part of a packed schedule of satellite parties hosted by media outlets, tech companies and political players.

It’s important to note, Grindr is not hosting the main dinner itself, but rather joining the long tradition of buzzy, invite-only circuit of events that orbit the main dinner. These gatherings have increasingly become the hottest events of the weekend, where journalists, politicians, celebrities and lobbyists mingle after speeches.

Grindr to make White House Correspondents’ Dinner weekend a little gayer

Joe Hack, the company’s head of global government affairs, said the decision to host comes down to visibility and influence in the spaces where policy is shaped.

“Grindr represents a global community with real stakes in Washington. The issues being debated here — HIV funding, digital privacy, LGBTQ+ human rights — are daily life for our community,” he said in a statement to the Washington Blade.

“Nobody does connections like Grindr, and WHCD weekend is the most iconic place in the country to make them.

“We figured it was time to host.”

The White House Correspondents’ Association dinner, first held in 1921, has long been a strange mix of journalism awards, political theatre and celebrity spectacle. But in 2026, the surrounding party circuit is arguably more influential than ever.

And yes, the irony writes itself

However, all of this is unfolding during hostile political climate for our people, that has seen renewed attacks on LGBTQIA+ rights and wellbeing in the United States, and around the globe.

Which makes the optics kinda hard to ignore: conservative lawmakers continue to target queer communities, yet one of the world’s most recognisable gay platforms is throwing a party in the middle of Washington’s biggest political events.

Trump has been putting in enormous energy to create anti-LGBTQIA+ policy to roll our community’s rights back, and yet – not even the orange buffoon can stop the juggernaut that is Grindr.

And considering the usage of Grindr goes absolutely bonkers at conservative events – even during the funerals of their right-wing heroes – come April 24, Grindr will no doubt be doing what it does best: making a shit-tonne of connections.