In it International LGBT+ Pride Daya survey on the representation that diversities have in the political sphere shows that more than half of the Argentines consulted are in favor of more candidacies of people from the group.
According to a survey of Lights/Plaster carried out in Argentina, Brazil, Colombia and Mexico, 55% of the country’s electorate is in favor of greater LGBT+ representation in politics and is the one that most defends the plurality of voices as an essential aspect of democracy: 66% stated that they fully or partially agree.
In turn, 63% are in favor, to some extent, of LGBT+ people running for and holding public office, the same percentage as the average for the countries. 7% said they would not vote at all for an LGBT+ presidential candidacy, below the average for the other countries surveyed, which was 9%.
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On the other hand, Argentine youth are the least likely of the four countries to support the expansion of LGBT+ representation: 51% support among people aged 18 to 24. In Mexico, the figure is 63% and in Brazil, 78%. In Colombia, the percentage is 59%.
Only 7% of the people consulted in Argentina stated that they would not vote for an LGBT+ candidacy for the Presidency.
The quantitative research included 4,400 online panel interviews (1,000 in Argentina; 1,200 in Brazil; 1,000 in Colombia and 1,200 in Mexico) of people older than 18 years. The study was carried out by Ipsos between April 27 and May 12, 2023. The margin of error is 1.5 pp (Argentina: 3.1 pp; Brazil: 2.8 pp; Colombia: 3.1 pp and Mexico: 2.8 pp).
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LGBT+ and political candidacies: 63% in Argentina do not believe that sexual orientation should be taken into account when voting
“Citizens want and deserve a truly representative democracy, in which all people, including LGBT+ people, can actively participate in building a more just society,” he said. Felipe Estefan, vice president of Luminate for Latin America. “The version of democracy that people hope to see in the future includes all the colors of the rainbow.”
Among the candidacies of sexual and gender diversity, it is trans people who face the greatest resistance from the electorate in the four countries. 49% of the total sample said they felt completely comfortable with the representation of transgender people in politics. For lesbian women, the result was 53% while 52% for gay men.
In Argentina, the results were 49% for trans people, 54% for lesbian women, and 53% for gay men.
The proportion of the total sample that defends at some level that the most important thing is to discuss and implement agendas that promote equality, regardless of the sexual orientation or gender identity of the rulers, is 60%. In Argentina, it is 70%. It is followed by Mexico, with 66%, Colombia, with 63%, and Brazil, with 53%.
“LGBT+ people face inequalities, violence and discrimination in Latin America. Ensuring their participation in political life is essential to avoid setbacks and advance in the guarantee of their rights.” said Estefan, who adds: “In the same way, they bring plural views to issues of interest to the whole of society. We need to work collectively so that they find space in political parties, can run for office and, once elected, have the confidence to exercise leadership that promotes rights and equality for all people.”
73% of the group surveyed across all countries believe, to some extent, that LGBT+ and non-LGBT+ people are equally capable of being good political leaders. In Argentina it rises to 75%.
63% in Argentina do not believe that the sexual orientation expressed by a candidate should be taken into account when votingthe highest result among the countries surveyed.
When asked about the main barriers to greater LGBT+ representation in politics, respondents in all four countries pointed to prejudice and discrimination (49%) as the main obstacle. In Argentina, this result was 46%. The other selected challenges in the country were the lack of support from political parties (35%) and fear of reprisals and threats (20%).