Outness and Identity in Context: Negotiating Sexual Disclosure in LGBT Campaigns

With Tammy Baldwin’s historic election to the US Senate, the future of LGBT politics appears increasingly optimistic; however, despite electoral progress, feminist and political science research on LGBT campaigns retains antiquated conceptions of outness. My article studies the impact of identity and outness on LGBT campaigns from a non-binary, multi-dimensional perspective. Beyond mere sexual disclosure itself, I find that where, when, and how a candidate reveals her/his sexual orientation bears predominant impact on LGBT campaigns. Through a holistic framework, I present innovative questions and perspective for researchers studying the effects of LGBT identity and outness in US electoral politics.