Ian Thorpe and his model boyfriend urge Australians to support same-sex marriage
By Joshua Haigh
Ian Thorpe and his boyfriend are hoping to get as many Australians as possible to vote in favour of same-sex marriage.
Politicians in Australia’s Senate have repeatedly shot down attempts to hold a referendum on equal marriage. In 2016, the Liberal Party was re-elected with a promise that they would let voters decide on same-sex marriage through a popular vote.
However, the vote was blocked, and the result could have technically been ignored by lawmakers anyway. The government is now going to hold a plebiscite to gauge public opinion on the issue.
Ian Thorpe – a five-time gold medal winning swimmer – has unveiled a new video with his boyfriend, model Ryan Channing, in a bid to get people to update their electoral details so they can show their support for same-sex marriage.
In the clever video, Thorpe reminds those watching that they can update their details faster than his hunky boyfriend can swim two lengths in the pool.
His boyfriend then adds: “Every Australian should have the right to take the plunge with the person they love.”
The results of the plebiscite, which asks citizens to mail in their responses to a particular issue, will not be legally-binding. It will merely act as a survey of attitudes towards same-sex marriage in the county.
It seems like yet another move to delay the inevitable in Australia, considering public opinion is known to be firmly on the side of legalising same-sex marriage.
The latest Newspoll, published in The Australian, found that 67% of people are planning on making a ‘definitely’ vote in the voluntary survey.