Shayne Mallard to become first gay Liberal to marry
Outgoing City of Sydney councillor Shayne Mallard will be the first gay member of the Liberal Party to take part in a same-sex marriage after announcing plans to marry in Denmark next year.
Mallard’s impending nuptials were announced as the party’s membership settled on Sydney Branch president Edward Mandla over Tony Abbott’s lesbian sister, Christine Forster, to take on Lord Mayor Clover Moore at September’s council elections. Foster will now run as number two on the ticket.
Mallard, who is leaving Council so that he may challenge Moore for her state seat of Sydney, told SX the selection of Mandla and Forster was a good move for the community.
“Edward and indeed Christine are the candidates vying for the seats on the council and for Lord Mayor and they certainly strongly carry the values I that I’ve carried in the council,” he said.
“They support marriage equality. They are about compassionate solutions to problems. They are good quality candidates that inner-city residents and communities should feel comfortable supporting.”
Speaking about his upcoming wedding to his Danish partner of more than a decade, Mallard maintained there was plenty of support for marriage equality within Liberal Party ranks despite federal Coalition Leader Tony Abbott’s position against it.
“There’s a lot of support for marriage equality in the Liberal Party across the board – parliamentary and in the general party,” he said.
“But I didn’t make this life changing decision on the basis of political opportunity, I can assure you.”
Mallard did suggest however that Australia was being left behind by other western democracies when it came to the reform.
“They’ve had civil unions for 15 years. Now they’ve got gay marriage and it can be conducted in a church,” he said.
“It just goes to show how far behind Australia is in this sort of thinking.”
- Tags: Christine Forster, City of Sydney, Coalition, Council, Edward Mandla, Election, Liberal Party, Marriage Equality, Same-Sex Marriage, Shayne Mallard, SX, Tony Abbott
Comments (7)
Shayne Mallard is a member of a party that is conservative and opposes gay marriage. It's all about him and his agenda. Morally and ethically he should resign from the Liberal Party.
It's complete BS: I know liberal party members who are gay who have married already in the US: they went there to do so. Shane Mallard is still a fame whore: he knows he's not the first but he wants the attention.
Mallard's rush to the alter in Copenhagen would have nothing to do with his preselection for the liberal party for the upcomming by election for Clover Moore's stolen state seat of Sydney would it ? lol. Homo conservatives like Mallard make me sick , happy to represent the party which denies its elected members federally a concience vote on marriage equality , the party in qld that is rolling back hard won rights for the GLBT community , the party which in Qld is allowing the 'gay panic ' defence in murder trials, the party of bigots like senator Bill Heffernan , the party whose leader is "threatened by gays" and cannot even find the good will to write a message of support for our Mardi Gras. Put Mallard last in the by election for Clovers stolen seat. Homo conservatives make me sick , sqabbling amongst themselves for the best bunk in the concentration camp.
Chris, how do they get elected? Perhaps because homosexuality has taken on a conservative angle and they represent mainstream. In that sense, we only have ourselves to blame. We are hell bent on representing being queer as only a minority issue.
"well done Shayne"????? I'm so tired of seeing these fucked up gay politicians sacrifice their own identity and compromise their own nature - as well as squander the opportunities - by being in a homophobic political party. Well done on nothing, Shayne. I mean, really, this guy wants people to VOTE IN the party that uses hatred towards us as a voting platform. We have niching to congratulate him for. He needs some therapy to work on his internalised self-loathing, and then maybe he wouldn't be this bizarre contradiction he is. And Abbot's sister should be ashamed of herself - the damage she could do, but instead she'll just happily let her own brother campaign against her own rights. THESE PEOPLE DO NOT DESERVE OUR SUPORT.
Well done Shayne. Give those idiotic Liberal MPs the kick up the ARSE they deserve!
It is odd to be gay and be part of a party that advocates the murder of Gay people under the Gay Panic Defence. A party that requires it's homosexual members to go overseas to marry is wierd. The LNP are not the party they used to be. They are the Nanny State, where small business is scorned in favor of Palmer. Like Titanic, they are doomed and ignoring the iceburg ahead.