President-elect Donald Trump has named Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) as his choice for secretary of state, even though the two once traded barbs as political rivals during the 2016 Republican presidential primary.

While Rubio has primarily served as a legislator for his home state of Florida, he has unwaveringly maintained anti-LGBTQ+ policy stances throughout his political career.

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Marco Rubio at a glance

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• Location: Miami, Florida
• Party Affiliation: Republican
• Race/Ethnicity: Cuban-American
• Gender Identity: Male
• Orientation: Heterosexual
• Pronouns: Him/him/his
• LGBTQ+ Ally: No

Social Media

• Facebook: Marco Rubio
• X: @MarcoRubio
• Instagram: MarcoRubio
• YouTube: MarcoRubio
• Website: MarcoRubio.com

Marco Rubio’s stance on LGBTQ+ issues

Same-sex marriage

Rubio has long opposed same-sex marriage, saying back in 2015 that the Supreme Court’s decision legalizing marriage equality was an example of the “government compelling” people “to sin.” He has said it is the duty of Christians to oppose the ruling.

He has also said he doesn’t believe that the U.S. Constitution gives the federal government the right to regulate marriage, the laws of which have traditionally been determined by states.

“There is no way that you can read that Constitution and deduce from it that there is a constitutional right to an abortion, or a constitutional right to marry someone of the same sex,” Rubio said.

In July 2022, Rubio said marriage equality is not “a real issue” (despite U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas saying that marriage equality should be overturned). He voted against the Respect for Marriage Act, a law requiring states and the federal government to recognize same-sex marriages. He reportedly called the law “a stupid waste of time.”

Trans children in sports

Rubio supports the so-called Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act of 2023, a law that would require schools’, colleges’, and universities’ athletics programs to determine a participant’s sex “based solely on a person’s reproductive biology and genetics at birth.”

In January 2024, Rubio sent a letter to USA Boxing for allowing “biological men to fight biological women,” a reference to the organization’s policy of allowing trans women to compete with cisgender women. He dishonestly stated that sports organizations’ trans inclusive policies compel athletes who identify as trans “to undergo dangerous and irreversible surgery that sterilizes them for life.”

During his 2022 re-election campaign, he ran transphobic ads accusing his opponent Rep. Val Demings (D-FL) of voting “to allow transgender youth sports.” His claim was based on Demings’ support of the Equality Act, legislation that would add sexual orientation and gender identity to pre-existing federal civil rights laws. The act would enshrine the rights of trans people to participate in school sports.

Transgender access to public bathrooms

When asked by the Catholic News Service whether “biological males should be permitted to use the women’s room in federal facilities and parks around the country,” Rubio responded, “No, I think men’s bathrooms are for men and women’s bathrooms are for women.”

He has also criticized the administration of President Joe Biden for requiring federal contractors to allow trans employees to use bathrooms matching their gender identity.