Liz Truss Attempts to Court LGBTQ+ Conservative Vote
Liz Truss, the current frontrunner to replace Boris Johnson as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, has been seeking an endorsement from the party's LGBTQ+ wing on her "record" on LGBTQ+ rights.
According to Politico, a member of the Truss campaign – which currently is leading over political rival Rishi Sunak – reached out to the group, LGBT+ Conservatives, to organize an endorsement of Truss based on her support for LGBTQ+ rights. Truss has been the Minister for Women and Equalities since 2019.
The plan had been to publish – in co-operation with LGBT+ Conservatives – an article praising Truss' record, written by rising star and bisexual MP Dehenna Davison. However, this was allegedly not relayed to Davison. LGBT+ Conservatives are unable to endorse any candidate for leadership due to its status as a party affiliate.
Earlier in the leadership campaign, LGBT+ Conservatives wrote to each potential leadership candidate to ask them three questions about how they would support the LGBTQ+ community. Two candidates, Kemi Badenoch and Liz Truss, did not send any answers back to LGBT+ Conservatives about their plans, largely seen as a snub at the time.
This is not Truss' only clash with the organization: inviting LGB Alliance to Conservative Party Conference last Autumn, Truss drew the ire of many members of the organization as well as a number of party members over LGB Alliance's stance on trans rights, which many believe Truss may sympathize with. With recent hustings focusing issues like trans rights, Truss took to the stage to declare “I know a woman is a woman – that’s become a controversial statement in some parts of Britain today.”
With many LGBTQ+ people supporting trans rights, especially many younger people, it has brought Truss into conflict with these members. “I just don’t trust her with my rights and I’m not sure many of the sensible LGBT members would either,” said one member. “She’s been equalities minister for nearly three years and I cannot point to one thing that she’s done for minorities.”
As Rishi Sunak also amps up the rhetoric around LGBTQ+ rights, threatening to do away with "woke nonsense" in relation to the Equality Act, this leadership campaign continues to become one that both depresses and concerns LGBTQ+ people on numerous levels.
Read related myGwork articles here:
Barrister Who Slammed Stonewall’s Trans Inclusion Advice Handed Key Equalities Role By Liz Truss
Liz Truss Suggests Government’s LGBT+ Action Plan Has Been Scrapped
Gender Recognition Act Does Not Need Changing, Liz Truss Says
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