Georgina Beyer was a New Zealand trans politician who served as a mayor twice and member of the parliament from 1999 to 2007. Until her unfortunate demise on March 6, 2023, the former drag queen battled kidney disease for many years but received a transplant in 2017 which was reportedly successful.
Brief Biography of Georgina Beyer
Even though she has long changed her name to Georgina Beyer, she was born George Bertrand sometime in November 1957. From what we garnered, she was raised by her parents Jack Bertrand and Neoline in Wellington, New Zealand until her father abandoned the family.
According to Georgina, her parents later went through a messy divorce when she was around the age of 12 or 13. As such, she had to stay with her mother’s family who lived in Taranaki, a Maori region on the North Island of New Zealand. Later, she moved to Wellington to live with her mother and new stepfather attorney Colin Beyer.
She is a Kidney Transplant Survivor; What Caused Her Death?
Georgina Beyer, unfortunately, passed on at the age of 65 on March 6, 2023, in hospice care. A statement put out by her close friends Malcolm Vaughan and husband Scott Kennedy reports that she was surrounded by her close friends and family until her passing.
“Georgie was surround by her nearest and dearest 24/7 over the past week, she accepted what was happening, was cracking jokes and had a twinkle in her eye, right until the final moment,”
Georgina’s cause of death has not been revealed but as you would find, she battled end-stage renal failure since 2013. Speaking about this, she said it is the most difficult health issue she has suffered.
The New Zealand-born managed the disease with 4-time daily dialysis until 2017 when she received a kidney transplant.
Did You Know These Other Facts about Georgina Beyer
1. She Was the World’s First Openly Transgender Person to Hold a National Office
There are several thousands of transgenders in the world, however, Georgina Beyer will be remembered as the first to become an MP. She was encouraged by her friends and colleagues to run for a seat on the Carterton District Council in 1992 but lost to a different candidate. Nonetheless, she tried again in 1995 and emerged as the winner.
She served as mayor of Carterton in New Zealand North Island until 1996 and was again reelected into office in 1998.
The following year, she became the Labour Party’s candidate for the Wairarapa seat in National Parliament. Georgina surprisingly won the election in 1999 and became the first openly transgender Member of the Parliament – an office she served until 2007 when she resigned. Her service came with the legalization of civil unions and gay marriages. She also passed the Prostitution Law Reform in 2003 as one who has been in the industry.
2. She Previously Worked as a Drag Queen and Sex Worker
Before Georgina took her seat in the National Parliament, she previously worked as a drag queen, sex worker, and actor. In an interview, she revealed that she was without a job for many years after joining the LGBTQIA+ community and had to start working in Wellington gay club as a drag queen but later joined the sex industry to keep going.
This period was a brutal time in her life. She recalled being sexually assaulted by a group of men and couldn’t talk to anyone about it or even report it to the police. Consequently, she spend months in depression and even considered committing suicide until she took her stance to make a difference as a trans woman.
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3. Georgina Beyer Has Several Acting Credits
Georgina developed a passion for acting during her teenage years and even had to quit her education for this cause. She started her career at Wellington Theatre in 1972 before moving to Auckland, New Zealand where she worked as a television/film actor and radio personality.
Some of her credited movies include A Death in the Family (1987), Close to Home, Shark in the Park, Shortland Street, Inside Straight (1984), and Jewel’s Darl (1986) which earned her a nomination for best actress in the Guild of Film & Television Arts Awards in 1987.
As a radio personality, she worked as a broadcaster for the morning show at Today FM from 1992 until she became the town’s mayor.
4. The Former Drag Queen was Never Married
Georgina was never married until her unfortunate demise. 10 years before her death, she revealed that she had never been in any serious relationship. According to her, her previous years were occupied with service as a mayor and member of the parliament. As such, building a relationship wasn’t a priority.
5. Georgina Beyer was Made a Member of the New Zealand Order and Merit
In 2020, the former sex worker Georgina received an award from Queen Elizabeth II for her services to the rainbow community and officially became a member of the New Zealand Law and Order. The award
As you would find, she was an active advocate of human rights and gender identity. As stated earlier, she fronted the legalization of civil unions and gay marriage and supported the bill on the issue of prostitution reform when she was in office.
In appreciation, she said;
“I think it is a validation of my quest for equality and to push boundaries in some areas – and in my lifetime and certainly in my political career time – the attitude of New Zealanders has changed significantly regarding significant minorities like the rainbow community and others”
