May 17, 2018
Alabama Gov. Lashes Out at Gay State Lawmaker's 'Disgusting' Gay Claim
Kilian Melloy READ TIME: 2 MIN.
The governor of Alabama, Kay Ivey, clapped back at social media posts from an openly gay state lawmaker suggesting that she is secretly gay and "moved her girlfriend out of her house when she became Gov," online news resource al.com reported.
The claim was tweeted and posted to Facebook on May 16 by Alabama's sole openly LGBTQ lawmaker, Democrat Patricia Todd, who wrote of the Republican governor, "Will someone out her for God's sake..." In the same post and tweet Todd added, "I am sick of closeted elected officials."
A spokesperson for the governor called the claim a "disgusting lie," while Ivey herself told local news station WVTM that she lives her life in accordance with biblical scripture and believes that marriage should be a special right reserved for heterosexual couples.
The governor doubled down on the use of the word "disgusting" with respect to Todd's claim and called it "a bald-faced lie." When questioned about her use of the word "disgusting," Ivey said she was not talking about gays or the idea of being gay, but rather the use of what she deemed falsehoods deployed for political purpose. "Telling lies is just disgusting," Ivey told WVTM.
Ivey became governor of Alabama last year after the resignation of Robert Bentley, who left office in the midst of a sex scandal and criminal accusations related to campaign funds. Ivey, 73, has announced she will be running to keep the office.
Todd, a 12-year veteran state lawmaker, will not be running for re-election and has been hired to head LGBTQ advocacy organization One Orland Alliance, a job she will begin on June 1.
Ivey will face three GOP opponents in next month's primary.
Kilian Melloy serves as EDGE Media Network's Associate Arts Editor and Staff Contributor. His professional memberships include the National Lesbian & Gay Journalists Association, the Boston Online Film Critics Association, The Gay and Lesbian Entertainment Critics Association, and the Boston Theater Critics Association's Elliot Norton Awards Committee.
