A new report from global human rights organisation Outright International highlights the prominence of anti-LGBTIQ+ rhetoric in political campaigns around the world.
Queering Democracy: The Global Elections in 2024 and How LGBTIQ+ People Fared examines political dynamics across 60 nations, including Australia, and the European Union.
The organisation found that at least 51 of these countries deliberately deployed anti-LGBTIQ+ language to incite fear and polarise voters during election cycles.
Despite the rise in hate and misinformation as an election strategy, other key findings include a rise in LGBTIQ+ participation despite significant barriers in many electorates, while LGBTIQ+ voters were more likely to mobilise against anti-rights movements and make their voices heard at the polls.
“The findings are a chilling indictment of the state of global democracy,” says Neela Ghoshal, Senior Director of Law, Policy, and Research at Outright International.
“Anti-LGBTIQ rhetoric is no longer a fringe issue; it is a central tool in the modern authoritarian playbook. When politicians attack their own citizens to win power, democracy itself is at risk.”
Outright International name the Australian Christian Lobby in its examination of campaigns targeting “gender ideology”, noting the group’s election websites that functioned as a blacklist for candidates who support “LGBTIQA+ gender-fluid ideology” in schools.
Australian political parties were also included in the report, noting the Liberal National Party campaign in Queensland, which warned other states have been “captured by transgender ideology”, and Family First’s action against drag queen story time events.
The report makes a range of recommendations to electoral management bodies, monitoring organisations, legislators and other stakeholders to promote inclusion and dispel misinformation.
Recommendations include holding candidates accountable for hate speech; ensuring trans, gender diverse and intersex voters can register and vote without discrimination; supporting LGBTIQ+ political candidates; mainstreaming LGBTIQ+ issues; and supporting LGBTIQ+ election initiatives.
The full report is available to download here.
