'Brokeback' Barnaby knows One Nation needs the pink vote
If One Nation genuinely wants to replace the Liberals and Nationals as the dominant force on the right, it needs a broader voter base. That is where the gay vote comes in.
One Nation party leader Barnaby Joyce has distanced himself from a former candidate who held homophobic views, while also claiming the party is one of the "gayest" in Australia. Parminder Singh, a former WA One Nation candidate, was removed from the party's website after describing homosexuality as a mental illness. Joyce described Singh's comments as "highly offensive" and claimed the party includes a "large proportion of gay people," emphasizing that they "just want people to accept" them.
He did not confirm if Singh had been disendorsed but confirmed his profile had been removed from the party website. The party's stance on gay rights has been inconsistent, with former Liberal senator Cory Bernardi still standing by controversial comments linking same-sex marriage to polygamy and bestiality. Meanwhile, One Nation has elected an openly gay MP, Jason Virgo, who spoke about his Muslim migrant partner in tears during a parliamentary session.
The party's position on gay rights is complex, with some members distancing themselves from homophobic comments while others, like Bernardi, refuse to back down. As the party continues to evolve, the contradictions within its stance on gay rights are becoming increasingly apparent.
Written by urgent.news from ABC News AU's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
