Leon de Beer | |
---|---|
Member of Parliament for Hillbrow | |
In office 1987–1989 | |
Preceded by | Alf Widman |
Succeeded by | Lester Fuchs |
Personal details | |
Born | 1959 |
Died | 10 June 2016 (age 57) Bloemfontein,Free State |
Nationality | South African |
Political party | National Party |
Leon de Beer was a South African politician who served as a member of the South African Parliament from 1987 to 1989. His election was notable because he was the first candidate in the country to appeal to gay voters. [1]
De Beer's 1987 campaign ran advertisements in the gay publication Exit and received a great deal of press as a result of his support for the gay community. His election was controversial not only because he supported the gay community,but because he was a member of the ruling National Party,which was responsible for both apartheid and previously enacted anti-sodomy laws. His campaign promise was twofold:to advance gay rights in the South African political arena and to reinstate Hillbrow as a whites-only area. [2] De Beer ultimately won the election and ousted the Progressive Federal Party incumbent Alf Widman,a victory largely attributed to the white gay community of Hillbrow. [3]
In 1988,de Beer,along with several other politicians,was charged with electoral fraud and he resigned in January 1989. He was convicted and was given a two-year prison sentence,of which he served eight months. [4]
After release,he served briefly on the African National Congress's south Free State regional executive in the 1990s and attempted to apply to stand as a candidate for the Democratic Party but was turned down. He also worked as a director for the Anglo-Boer War Foundation,which became a source of controversy after his previous conviction became known to the Foundation's organizers. [5] [6]
Leon de Beer died in June 2016 in Bloemfontein. [7]
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