Newark Mayor and Democratic Senate candidate Cory Booker says he
hopes people are not voting for him presuming that he's straight.
The 44-year-old unmarried Booker is often questioned about his
sexual orientation because he refuses to discuss his personal life
and is a strong supporter of LGBT rights.
“[P]eople who think I'm gay, some part of me thinks it's
wonderful,” Booker said in a The
Washington Post profile. “Because I want to challenge
people on their homophobia. I love seeing on Twitter when someone
says I'm gay, and I say, 'So what does it matter if I am? So be it.
I hope you are not voting for me because you are making the
presumption that I'm straight.'”
Booker added that he doesn't discuss his dating life because “how
unfair is it to a young lady to put them in the spotlight if they
haven't signed up for that yet?”
Booker and Republican Steve Lonegan are vying to fill the seat
left vacant by the June 6 death of Senator Frank Lautenberg. A
special election will take place on October 16.