Republican Gay Sex Scandals

It's not a scandal for a supporter of gay rights to have same-sex relationships. But when Republicans publicly advocate and/or vote for anti-LGBT policies while privately engaging in same-sex relationships, that is a scandal. Sadly, the Republican party's hostility towards LGBT issues means so many Republican politicians have to stay in the closet.
Scandal Categories
Displaying 13 Scandals
Sorted by When News Broke
  • Florida GOP Chair Christian Ziegler
    had group sex with a woman he and his wife Bridget Ziegler were longtime friends with after having hypocritically spent years lambasting LGBTQ rights and touting the importance of adhering to "traditional family values" in public and private life
    13 Dec 2023
  • Moms for Liberty Founder Bridget Ziegler
    participated in at least one three-way sexual encounter with her husband and a mutual female friend while also hypocritically being an ardent opponent of gay rights who has spent years touting the importance of "traditional family values"
    30 Nov 2023
  • ACU Chair Matt Schlapp
    hypocritically engaged in gay behavior where he groped 3 men and attempted to kiss another without their consent while leading an organization that promotes anti-LGBTQ policies and gives a prominent platform to virulently anti-gay demagogues
    06 Jan 2023
  • State Sen. Ralph Shortey [R-OK]
    paid for sex with a 17-year-old minor boy he found on Craigslist at a local Super 8 Motel while also being a married father with four young children and an avid supporter of Anti-LGBT legislation who proclaimed he was a “family values Republican”
    01 Feb 2019
  • State Rep. Wes Goodman [R-OH]
    had multiple sexual encounters with a number of young men over a yearslong period in person, online, via text and over the phone while also having spent much of his political career catering to evangelical voters by preaching the virtues of "committed natural marriage" between one man and one woman
    21 Nov 2017
  • State Rep. Randy Boehning [R-ND]
    sent nude images of himself to men decades younger than him on a gay dating website around the same time he voted against an anti-discrimination bill that intended to provide additional protections to the LGBTQ community
    29 Apr 2015
    According to private messages on a gay dating website provided by a young man he was in communication with
  • Family Research Council Minister George Rekers
    hired a twenty-year-old male to touch his genitals and give him daily nude massages throughout a European vacation after finding him on the "rent boy" escort website while also being a married pastor who publicly espoused virulently anti-gay sentiments
    06 May 2010
    According to an investigative report by the Miami New Times
  • State Sen. Roy Ashburn [R-CA]
    drove his taxpayer owned vehicle erratically in the middle of two lanes, needlessly applied his brakes multiple times and idled at a stop sign for roughly one minute while no cross traffic from either direction approached after he left a popular gay bar he had been drinking at -- while also being a vocal opponent of gay rights -- after which police pulled him over around 2am and arrested him
    19 Mar 2010
    According to charging documents filed by local police
  • State Rep. Bob Allen [R-FL]
    offered to perform oral sex on a random stranger in a public men's restroom for $20 mere months after he co-sponsored a bill that called for public sex offenses like this to be charged as a felony instead of misdemeanor offense
    10 Nov 2007
    According to charging documents filed by state officials
  • Pastor Ted Haggard
    hypocritically engaged in gay behavior including seeing a male prostitute for years and inappropriately touching an underage boy while also being an ardent opponent of gay rights
    01 Nov 2006
    According to multiple reports by mainstream outlets
  • Pastor Ted Haggard
    paid to have sex with a male prostitute on a monthly basis over a three-year period after finding him through an ad on the website "Rentboy.com" while also being a married father of five who was a vocal opponent of gay rights
    01 Nov 2006
    According to an exclusive report by The Denver Post
  • Rep. Mark Foley [R-FL]
    had sexual relations with two former male pages and sent dozens of inappropriate and sexually suggestive emails and instant messages to underage male pages over a yearslong period while also having voted in favor of numerous pieces of anti-gay legislation throughout his time in Congress
    15 Oct 2006
    According to voluminous reports filed by mainstream media outlets
  • Mayor Jim West [R-WA]
    tried to woo an 18-year-old man with gifts and other favors he found on the website Gay.com who turned out to be a professional investigator hired by a local newspaper while he was married and after having hypocritically spent two decades in the state legislature pushing anti-LGBTQ legislation
    05 May 2005
    According to an investigative report by The Spokesman-Review