List of the first LGBT holders of political offices

This is a list of political offices which have been held by a lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgendered person, with details of the first holder of each office. It should only list people who came out as LGBT before or during their terms in office; it should not list people who came out only after retiring from politics, or people who were outed by reference sources only after their death.

The year in brackets refers to the year which the officeholder was elected as an openly LGBT person. If he or she came out during term of office it is referred to after the year in brackets.

It is ordered by country, by dates of appointment. , such as Yugoslavia, are also listed.

International bodies

European Union

*European Commissioner: Peter Mandelson - 2004 (British)

National bodies

Americas

Brazil

*Member of Parliament (Congress): Clodovil Hernandez - 2006

Canada

* First openly gay political candidate, regardless of electoral status: Robert Douglas Cook
* Member of Parliament:
**Male: Svend Robinson - elected 1979, came out in 1988
**Female: Libby Davies - elected 1997, came out in 2001
**Already out at first election: Bill Siksay - 2004
* Senator:
**Male: Laurier LaPierre - 2001
**Female: Nancy Ruth - 2005
* Mayor of large city: Glen Murray (Winnipeg) - 1998 (world's first)
* Leader of a federal political party: Chris Lea (Green) - 1990
* Federal cabinet minister: Scott Brison - 2004
* Provincial cabinet minister:
**Male: Tim Stevenson (British Columbia) - 2000
**Female: Kathleen Wynne (Ontario) - 2006
* Leader of a provincial party: Allison Brewer (New Brunswick New Democratic Party) - 2005
* Leader of a provincial party with seats in a legislature: André Boisclair (Parti Québécois) - 2005
* Deputy Premier of a province: George Smitherman (Ontario) - 2006
* Municipal politician in Toronto: Kyle Rae
* Municipal politician in Edmonton: Michael Phair
* Municipal politician in Ottawa: Alex Munter - 1994

Mexico

*Member of Congress: Patria Jiménez - 1997
*Male member of Congress: David Sánchez Camacho - 2006

United States

Federal
*Congress:
**U.S. Representative: Gerry Studds (MA-12, MA-10) - came out 1983
**U.S. Representative (out when first elected): Tammy Baldwin (WI-2) - elected 1998
**First congressional committee chairman: Barney Frank (MA-4) - elected in 1981, came out 1987, chairman of House Financial Services Committee since 2007

State
*State governor:
**New Jersey: Jim McGreevey - came out 2004
*State legislators:
**Massachusetts: Rep. Elaine Noble - elected 1974, came out 1974 after election
**Minnesota: Sen. Allan H. Spear - elected 1972, came out December 1974
**New Hampshire: Rep. Raymond Buckley - elected 1986
**Washington State: Rep. (later Sen.) Cal Anderson - appointed 1987
**Connecticut: Rep. Joseph S. Grabarz Jr - came out 1990
**Maine: Sen. Dale McCormick - elected 1990
**New York: Assemblywoman Deborah Glick - elected 1990
**Vermont: Rep. Ron Squires - elected 1990
**Oregon: Rep. Gail Shibley - appointed 1991
**Texas: Rep. Glen Maxey - elected 1991
**New Mexico: Sen. Liz Stefanics - elected 1992
**Wisconsin: Ass. (now U.S. Rep.) Tammy Baldwin - elected 1992
**Rhode Island: Sen. William Fitzpatrick - elected 1992, came out 1992 after election
**Arizona: Rep. (now Sen.) Ken Cheuvront - elected 1994
**California: Ass. (now Sen.) Sheila Kuehl - elected 1994
**Missouri: Rep. Tim Van Zandt - elected 1994
**Illinois: Rep. Larry McKeon - elected 1996
**Montana: Rep. Diane Sands - appointed 1996
**Nevada: Assemblyman David Parks - elected 1996
**Utah: Rep. Jackie Biskupski - elected 1998
**Georgia: Rep. Karla Drenner - elected 2000
**Michigan: Rep. Chris Kolb - elected 2000
**Colorado: Rep. (now Sen.) Jennifer Veiga - came out 2002
**Maryland: Del. Maggie McIntosh - came out 2002
**Kentucky: Sen. Ernesto Scorsone - came out 2003
**Virginia: Del. Adam Ebbin - elected 2003
**Iowa: Sen. Matt McCoy - came out 2004
**Idaho: Rep. Nicole LeFavour - elected 2004
**North Carolina: Sen. Julia Boseman - elected 2004
**Alabama: Rep. Patricia Todd - elected 2006
**Arkansas: Rep. Kathy Webb - elected 2006
**Oklahoma: Rep. Al McAffrey - elected 2006
**New Jersey: Asm. Reed Gusciora - came out 2006

Local
*Executive:
**First mayor of a U.S. state capital: David Cicilline, Providence, Rhode Island - 2002
**Largest city with a gay mayor: Toni Atkins, San Diego, California - 2005
*Legislative:
**City Councillor: Nancy Wechsler, Jerry DeGrieck (Ann Arbor) - came out 1973
**City Councillor: Kathy Kozachenko (Ann Arbor) - out when elected in1974
**City-County Supervisor: Harvey Milk (City and County of San Francisco) - came out 1977

Europe

Austria

*Member of Parliament: Ulrike Lunacek - 1999

Belgium

*Member of Parliament, Party president and Minister-President of the Waloon Region: Elio di Rupo (PS) - came out in 2001

Denmark

*Member of Parliament:
**Female: Yvonne Herløv Andersen - 1998 she was also MP a few terms during the 70's and 80's, but not as openly lesbian.
**Male: Torben Lund - 1998 came out in February 1998 while still an MP.
*Member of the European Parliament: Torben Lund - 1999-2005

Finland

*Member of Parliament: Oras Tynkkynen - 2004

France

*Member of Parliament: André Labarrère - came out 1998
*Mayor of Paris: Bertrand Delanoë - 2001

Germany

*Member of Parliament:
**Male: Herbert Rusche - 1985 also as succeeding MP during 1983
**Male: Volker Beck - 1994
**Female: Jutta Oesterle-Schwerin - 1987
*Leader of a big political party: Guido Westerwelle (FDP) came out 2004
*Mayors:
**Berlin: Klaus Wowereit - 2001
**Hamburg: Ole von Beust - 2001

Hungary

*Member of Government:
**Secretary of State for Human Resources: Gábor Szetey came out 2007

=Ireland=

*Senator: David Norris (Dublin University) - 1987
*County Councillor: Peter Kelly (Cork County Council) [cite news|url=http://archives.tcm.ie/irishexaminer/2006/04/05/story901079391.asp|title=Fine Gael to elect new council leader |last=O’Riordan|first=Seán|date=2006-04-05|work=Irish Examiner|accessdate=2008-09-25] - 1999 [cite web|url=http://www.electionsireland.org/candidate.cfm?ID=6141|title=People > K > Peter Kelly|work=electionsireland|accessdate=2008-09-25]

Italy

*Member of Parliament:
**Male: Angelo Pezzana - 1983
**Female: Titti De Simone - 2001
**Transgender: Vladimir Luxuria - 2006
*Member of the government:
**Minister of Environment: Alfonso Pecoraro Scanio - came out 2000 - again Minister of Environment in 2006 (bisexual)
*Member of the European Parliament: Gianni Vattimo - 1999

Netherlands

*Member of Parliament:
**Male: Coos Huijsen - came out 1977
**Female: Evelien Eshuis - 1982
*Member of Government:
**Minister of Economic Affairs: Joop Wijn - 2006
*Member of the European Parliament: Herman Verbeek - 1984

Norway

*Member of Parliament:
**Female: Wenche Lowzow - 1977-1985 came out 1979, reelected 1981
**Male: Anders Hornslien - came out 1994
*Member of Government:
**Minister of Finance: Per Kristian Foss - 2001-2005
*City council chairman of Oslo: Erling Lae - 2000-present

Spain

*Member of the Cortes: Jerónimo Saavedra Acevedo(PSOE)-Has been a member of the Congress of Deputies and the Senate since 1977 until 2004 with some interruptions - came out 2000
*Autonomic President: Jeronimo Saavedra Acevedo , President of the Canary Islands 1983-1987 and 1991-1993
*Member of Government:
**Minister of Public Administrations and of Education and Science: Jerónimo Saavedra (Public Administrations, 1993-1995 and of Education and Science 1995-1996)
*Mayor of a Provincial Capital: Jerónimo Saavedra, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria Incumbent since 2007
*Member of the Parliament of Catalonia when openly Gay: Miquel Iceta PSC, since 1999
*Spanish member of the European Parliament: José María Mendiluce Pereiro (PSOE-later joined the Greens)1999-2004 - came out 2003
*Transgender town councillor: Manuela Trasobares (ARDE) 2007- at Geldo, Castellon

Sweden

*Member of Parliament:
**Male: Kent Carlsson (s) - came out 1991, died in 1993
**Female: Elisebeht Markström (s) - came out publicly in 2006
*Member of Government:
**Minister of the Environment: Andreas Carlgren (c) - 2006
**Minister of Migration Affairs: Tobias Billström (m) - 2006 (bisexual)

Switzerland

*Member of Parliament:
**Male: Claude Janiak - 1999 - speaker of House of Representatives 2006
**Female: Doris Stump - 2003

United Kingdom

* Member of Parliament: Chris Smith (came out 1984, re-elected 1987)
** out when first elected: Ben Bradshaw & Stephen Twigg (elected 1997)
** lesbian: Angela Eagle (came out 1997, re-elected 2001)
** Conservative: Michael Brown (outed 1994)
** Conservative, voluntarily out: Alan Duncan (came out 2002, re-elected 2005)
** Conservative, out when first elected: Nick Herbert (elected 2005)
** Liberal Democrat, out when first elected: Stephen Williams (elected 2005)
* *Member of Government:
** Chris Smith (appointed 1997)
* Peer: Waheed Alli, Baron Alli (came out 1999)
* Member of Scottish Parliament: Margaret Smith - 1999
* Member of the European Parliament: Michael Cashman - 1999

Africa

South Africa

*Member of Parliament: Mike Waters - 1999
*High Court Judge: Edwin Cameron - 1995

Asia

Israel

* City councillor: Michal Eden (elected 1998, Tel-Aviv)
* male: Saar Nathaniel (elected 2003, Jerusalem)
* Member of Parliament (Knesset): Uzi Even - 2003
*Itay Pinkas (elected,current member of Tel Aviv municipality)
*female Marsha Friedman Knesset member

Japan

*Transgender city councillor: Aya Kamikawa - 2003
*Lesbian,Osaka congressist: Kanako Otsuji - 2005

Nepal

*Constituent Assembly Member: Sunil Pant - 2008

Oceania

Australia

*Senator: Bob Brown - 1996
*Senator: Penny Wong
*Member of Government:
**Minister for Climate Change and Water: Penny Wong - 2007
*State MPs:
** Australian Capital Territory: Andrew Barr - 2006
** New South Wales: Paul O'Grady came out 1990
** South Australia: Ian Hunter - 2006
** Tasmania: Bob Brown - 1983
** Victoria: Andrew Olexander - 1999
** Western Australia: Giz Watson - 1997
** State or territory cabinet minister: Andrew Barr - 2006
* Justice of the High Court of Australia: Michael Kirby came out 1999

Guam

*Supreme Court Justice: Benjamin Cruz - 1997 came out 1995, Chief Justice 1999-2001

New Zealand

*Transsexual mayor: Georgina Beyer - 1995 (world's first)
*Transsexual member of Parliament: Georgina Beyer - 1999 (world's first)
*Member of Parliament:
**Male: Chris Carter - 1993
**Female: Maryan Street - 2005
*Cabinet Minister: Chris Carter - 2002

References