Grant Robertson In the ping-pong to and fro-ing of opinion over whether Labour leadership hopeful Grant Robertson's sexuality will count against him a prominent Labour MP says it won't. A number of political commentators have suggested that being gay hurts Robertson's chances of the top Labour job, and ex-MP Georgina Beyer, the world's first transsexual MP, also believes it will lessen his chances. However, Mangere MP Su'a William Sio has told Radio NZ that Roberson's being gay has not come up in leadership discussions in his electorate. Mangere is in south Auckland where a largely blue-collar and Pacific Island church-influenced population are believed to take a dim view of the leader and potential PM being gay. A former chair of Labour's Samoan branch in Manukau East has reinforced this view of homosexuality as a liability in the area's electorates. Sio says Pasifika party members want a strong leader who can take on John Key and who their communities can connect with emotionally and intellectually. He believes Robertson's inexperience is the stumbling block, and Pasifika support is therefore going primarily to David Cunliffe.
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Friday, 6th September 2013 - 2:32pm