SYDNEY, March 6 (Reuters) - New Zealander Georgina Beyer, the world's first openly transgender member of parliament and tireless advocate for LGBTQ rights, has died at the age of 65.
She had long battled kidney disease but statements about her death did not mention the cause.
A former sex worker, actor and drag queen, Beyer was elected to national parliament in 1999 after several years as mayor of Carterton, a rural town on the country's North Island.
Beyer received a kidney transplant in 2017 after four years of end-stage renal failure that required daily dialysis.
"I certainly think that Georgina blazed a trail that has made it much easier for others to follow."