ACT leader David Seymour has been accused of sending a condescending response to a transgender constituent who criticized his support for NZ First's gender bill, highlighting the political about-face from a party that once proudly backed progressive social reforms.
The email exchange, shared on Reddit, shows a trans woman questioning Seymour's U-turn on trans rights after his party supported the 2021 Births, Deaths, Marriages and Relationships Registration Act. The response she received was described as "deeply unprofessional and condescending."
The constituent noted that Seymour's response amounted to "silly little girl don't you know that people are different that's why I'm voting to revoke your passport," and criticized what she called denial of basic reality. "Denying basic reality would actually entail looking at my physiologically female body that produces no gametes whatsoever and concluding it's 'biologically male,'" she wrote.
Seymour backed the Births Deaths Marriages bill but now votes to restrict trans rights. This is political opportunism dressed up as principle.
ACT has long positioned itself as the party of individual liberty and personal freedom. Seymour himself championed the End of Life Choice Act, which legalized assisted dying against significant conservative opposition. He framed that campaign around bodily autonomy and the right of individuals to make decisions about their own lives.
Now he's voting to restrict trans people's ability to have their gender legally recognized. The contradiction is stark.
Political positions evolve. Parties change their views. But when your core brand is personal freedom and individual liberty, abandoning trans rights looks less like evolution and more like calculation. Seymour knows his coalition partners— and —want this bill. He's prioritizing coalition stability over consistency.
