Andrew Gillum. Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images
Andrew Gillum, the former mayor of Tallahassee, Florida, came out as bisexual in an interview with Tamron Hall on Monday.
Driving the news: "I don’t identify as gay, but I do identify as bisexual. And that is something that I have never shared publicly before," Gillum, who was once considered a rising star in the Democratic party after his Florida gubernatorial run in 2018, told Hall.
Background: In March, Gillum was found inebriated in a Florida motel room with two men, one of whom was identified as a male escort who was being treated for a drug overdose. Gillum later issued a statement saying he planned to withdraw from public life to deal with his alcohol abuse.
- "Since my race for governor ended, I fell into a depression that has led to alcohol abuse," he said. "I witnessed my father suffer from alcoholism and I know the damaging effects it can have when untreated. I also know that alcoholism is often a symptom of deeper struggles."
Gillum lost the close Florida governor's race to Republican Ron DeSantis by less than half a percentage point and was widely seen as an up-and-coming political star prior to his withdrawal from public life.
- R. Jai Gillum, Gillum's wife, told Hall that she viewed sexuality as something that exists on a spectrum. "All I care about is what’s between us and what agreement we make,” she told Hall.