Random Anti-Gay Politicians with LGBTQ+ Relatives (12 items)

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  (#3) Karl Rove

  • 68

  Stance on LGBT Rights:
  Rove used anti-gay marriage amendments to turn out conservatives in 2004, particularly in Ohio. Though he now says he never asked for an anti-gay fight, his strategy to get conservatives to vote may have worked short-term, but ultimately it has harmed the GOP brand with younger voters.

  Gay Relative:
  Rove's stepfather, Louis, was gay. Rove's parents divorced when Louis, whom he considered to be his father (Rove's biological father left when he was a small child) came out when Karl was a senior in high school. According to an interview with Wayne Slater and James Moore, Rove told them that he "lovingly accepted his father as a gay man," and treated Louis with respect. Every other homosexual in the country? Not so much.
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  (#5) Newt Gingrich

  • 75

  Stance on LGBT Rights:
  The former Republican Speaker of the House has long been opposed to LGBT rights. He claims the fight over LGBT rights is one-sided because they undermine Catholic rights. He's also said gay people choose to be gay and aren't born gay.

  Recently, Gingrich changed his tune, saying that Republicans need to reconsider their position on same-sex marriage due to shifts in the way that the issue perceived by public opinion. 

  Gay Relative:
  Candice Gingrich-Jones, Newt's younger sister by several decades, is a lesbian. She is a LGBT rights activist and holds a leadership position in the Human Rights Campaign.

  In 2011, she was honored by the American Humanist Association, receiving the LGBT Humanist Pride Award. Just in case you were wondering, she didn't support her brother's 2012 campaign; she endorsed Barack Obama.

  After Newt gave an interview in 2013 saying that conservatives need to reconsider their position on same-sex marriage, Candice praised his evolving opinion on LGBT issues, hoping that the rest of the GOP follows his lead and thinks progressively on LGBT issues.
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  (#10) Don Coram

  Stance on LGBT Rights:
  As a member of the Colorado's House State, Veterans and Military Affairs Committee, Coran was the deciding vote that killed a proposed bill that would have legalized same sex civil unions in 2012.

  He justified his vote by saying Democrats used gay rights as political pawn.

  Gay Relative:
  Coran's son, Dee, is openly gay. Dee has spoken out about his father's position, saying that it was time for his father to lead on the issue of civil unions but failed to do so. Don told his son that he was going to vote no on the bill, but wouldn't be opposed to the bill moving to the floor. But his vote indicated otherwise.

  The younger Coran added that this wasn't the first time the two of them have disagreed on political issues.
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  (#8) Marsha Looper

  • 60

  Stance on LGBT Rights:
  The Colorado State Rep. voted against same sex civil unions during a special legislative session in the state legislature. Looper was part of a Republican bloc that voted against the bill reaching the Colorado House of Representatives in 2012. Had it reached the House, the bill was likely to pass.

  Gay Relative:
  Looper's son was outed by her own campaign after the vote.

  In an email written by her campaign manager, Lana Fore-Warkocz , Looper was praised for protecting Colorado from religious harm, despite having a gay son. Incensed, the state representative sharply criticized her campaign manager for bringing her son into the political forum.

  Talk about a campaign fail.
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  (#7) Matt J Salmon

  Stance on LGBT:
  Salmon, a Republican congressman from Arizona, is a staunch social conservative who voted for the now defunct Defense of Marriage Act.

  As a conservative Mormon, Salmon also called for a ban on gay adoptions in Washington, D.C. If that isn't enough, he and his wife led the Arizona chapter of United Families International, a group formed to "maintaining and strengthening the family." The group fought to ban gay marriage, civil unions, and domestic partnerships in the Arizona state constitution in 2006, but ultimately failed.

  Gay Relative:
  Matt R. Salmon, Congressman Salmon's son, is a former leader of the Arizona Log Cabin Republicans, a pro-gay rights GOP group and is openly gay. He gets along well with his father, even though the older Salmon considers homosexuality a choice.
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  (#1) Alan Keyes

  • 68

  Stance on LGBT Rights:
  The former Republican political candidate is one of the staunchest anti-gay rights politicians in the United States. He's said that gay marriage “is the archetype of all crimes against humanity,” and considers gay marriage a crime. An actual crime.

  He's also called homosexuality "selfish hedonism," and has appeared on multiple programs over the years railing against LBGT culture. He's stood against it every step of the way, despite having an LGBT daughter.

  Gay Relative:
  Keyes's daughter, Maya Marcel-Keyes, came out of the closet in 2005.

  Since then, she's been involved in a number of protests and with various LGBT activist organizations. She is a member of the Board of Directors for the National Youth Advocacy Coalition, which speaks on behalf of LGBT families and youth across the country, always trying to counteract at least a little bit of what her father does to her community.
  

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