What Explains Party Position Change on LGBTQ+ Rights? The Case of Canada

• In Event: LGBTQ Behavior and Representation

Abstract

What explains party position change on LGBTQ+ rights? This paper asks whether party position change is driven mostly by conversion (i.e., incumbents changing their positions) or replacement (i.e., legislative turnover). The conventional wisdom from the US is that legislators avoid changing their positions for fear of looking inconsistent or unprincipled (Stimson 2004). This is especially the case for highly visible and “emotional” issues such as abortion (Adams 1997) and LGBTQ+ rights (Kersting 2021; Bishin et al. 2021; but see also Karol 2012). The relative importance of replacement to party position change in the US might be due to unusual circumstances, especially the centrality of these issues to party politics given the strength of ties between the Christian Right and the Republican Party on the one hand and the LGBTQ+ movement and the Democratic Party on the other. This paper turns to Canada where issues of LGBTQ+ rights have been less central to party politics in part due to less strong group-party ties. This paper examines party position change over time among Members of Parliament on two issues: same-sex marriage (1999-2006) and gender identity protections (2011-2017). This paper will contribute to academic debates about party position change and shed light on whether LGBTQ+ activists should focus their efforts on changing the minds of incumbents.

Author

• Elizabeth Baisley, Queen's University