Maine State Rep. Charles Skold Comes Out: I'm Gay/Queer, Not Bi

Charles Skold, a Maine state representative who previously identified as bisexual, has posted on social media that he now identifies as gay or queer.

In a post on X, formerly Twitter, Skold wrote, “Last month I was listed as one of 35 bisexual lawmakers to know! This #NationalComingOutDay I’ll share I now describe myself as gay or queer. Our journeys evolve. What’s important is living our authentic self every day. I'm a man who loves other men, learning to love myself too!”

Skold, a Democrat, is in his first term in the Maine House of Representatives, having been elected in 2022. He has pledged to fight back against right-wing efforts to roll back LGBTQ+ and minority rights, and he is an advocate for the poor and working class. “The advances we have made in equal rights are being threatened, and we need people who will fight for them,” he told the Portland Press Herald in 2022, ahead of the Democratic primary.

He gained some attention in June, as legislators debated a rating system for books with sexual content, he wondered aloud what rating the Bible would receive, as it includes stories of “sex, incest, rape, murder,” as reported by the Maine Wire (which, it should be noted, is a far-right site).

Skold knows his Bible; he earned a master of theological studies degree at Harvard University (along with a master of public administration degree) in 2019 and worked for five years in college ministry at Tufts University. He did his undergrad studies at Tufts, where he graduated with a degree in political science in 2011. He attends St. Luke’s Episcopal Cathedral in Portland, where he volunteers with the congregation’s Public Policy and Environmental Action Team. He also volunteers with another environmental group, the Portland Climate Action Team, and Greater Portland Family Promise, which assists low-income and unhoused families. He is a veteran Democratic Party activist as well.

Skold lives in Portland, the state’s largest city, and he grew up in Freeport, Maine. When he’s not legislating, he trains business leaders in the practice of negotiation as director of program development at SAB Negotiation Group.

His legislative achievements include sponsoring a bill to bring Maine into line with federal law regarding tipped workers, which was signed into law by Gov. Janet Mills in June. Maine law previously said tip-pooling arrangements couldn’t include restaurant employees who aren’t servers — cooks and dishwashers, for instance. Since federal law now allows their inclusion, Skold sponsored legislation to allow Maine restaurants to include them in tip pools as well, something he says will foster teamwork.

Also this year, he introduced a bill designed to help low-income Mainers get reimbursed for attorneys’ fees and court costs if they win a lawsuit, but so far it has not passed.