San Marino, a small republic in Italian territory, on Friday elected a gay man as head of state, which, according to his reports, will be a world debut.
Paulo Rondelli, San Marino’s former ambassador to Washington, will be one of the “two Regent Captains” elected by indirect vote to lead the micro-state with 34,000 people over the next six months, according to local tradition.
Paulo Rondelli, 58, said on his Facebook account that he was “the first head of state in the world to be part of the LGBT (lesbian, homosexual, bisexual and transgender) community.”
San Marino, a micro-state in which people often hold conservative views, has begun a series of reforms in recent years aimed at strengthening civil rights. In addition to decriminalizing homosexuality – imprisonment until 2004 – San Marino recognized couples without gender discrimination in 2016, and its residents voted in favor of legalizing abortion in the 2021 referendum. Agerpres.
Marco Tondi, president of the RCK Association in Emilia-Romagna, the Italian region of San Marino, hailed it as a “historic event”.
“He was the first gay and LGBT rights activist. There are precedents among heads of government and ministers, but this is the world stage for a head of state.“, Marco Tondi added.
Many governments since 2013 have been or are run by homosexuals, such as Luxembourg’s Prime Minister Xavier Petal and Iceland’s Johanna Sigurdardottir (2009-2013).
Several Italian politicians attended the inauguration of the two Regent Captains of San Marino on Friday, including Justice Minister Marta Cordobia and Senator Monica Sirinna, who became famous in Italy for their LGBT rights.
Paolo Rondelli “A man of enormous culture and excellent diplomatic and political experience. He fought for the rights of women and the LGBT people in San Marino, not just in San Marino,” Monica Sirina wrote on her Facebook account.
“It fills me with a historic day, joy and pride, as Paulo Rondelli will be the world’s first head of state to join the LGBT community for the next six months starting today.“, Said the Italian senator.
“Evil gamer. Amateur music trailblazer. Alcohol geek. Problem solver. Coffee advocate. Troublemaker. Infuriatingly humble zombieaholic.”