Republican lawmaker's Grindr profile made public over vote against gay rights

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Dustin Smith, a 21-year-old gay man in Bismarck, received messages and explicit photos from user going by Top Man! on Grindr
Smith realized that user was staunch state conservative Randy Boehning after reading of the lawmaker's vote against a gay rights bill this month
Smith went to the press and Boehning soon admitted he uses the gay app -- but the 52-year-old says its part of a rival's smear campaign

Published: 15:08 GMT, 29 April 2015 | Updated: 15:42 GMT, 29 April 2015

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Outed on Grindr: Republican lawmaker from North Dakota, Randy Boehning, has an over 10-year history of voting against gay rights. On Monday, he was outed for using gay hook-up app Grindr

A Republican lawmaker in North Dakota with a long record of opposition to pro-gay rights laws was revealed this week to be an active user of gay hook-up app Grindr and claims he was outed as part of a smear campaign by a rival.

Randy Boehning, a 52-year-old who's represented Fargo since 2002, sent messages and a photo of his penis to a 21-year-old gay man in Bismark named Dustin Smith.

Smith recognized the staunch conservative and took his story, and explicit photo, to the press.

But, while admitting he's gay and uses Grindr, the public official claimed his private life was revealed as part of a fellow lawmaker's retaliation for his vote against a bill that would afford protections to gays.

Smith told Forum on Monday that he first recognized Boehning, who he knew by the Grindr handle Top Man!, while reading an April 2 article that pictured all the state's House of Representatives members who voted down an anti-discrimination bill.

'Suddenly it dawned on me: I think I've seen this guy on Grindr!' Smith told the Washington Post on Wednesday.

Using the 'an all-male location-based social network' on his phone, Smith retrieved the conversation in question in which Boehning, without solicitation, sent a photo of his penis along with one of his face.

'I just felt like this story had to get out,' Smith said. '[He] voted against a bill for the LGBT community and here he was talking to me on Grindr.'

Forum ran their story on Monday, in which Boehning both came out and accused an employee at his workplace for exposing him after he exposed himself.

'That's what gay guys do on gay sites, don't they?' Boehning told Forum. 'That's how things happen on Grindr. It's a gay chat site. It's not the first thing you do on that site. That's what we do, exchange pics on the site.'

Top Man! Dustin Smith, a 21-year-old gay man who lives in Bismarck, recognized Boehning as Grindr user Top Man! and took his story to the local press

Boehning went on to claim that, prior to his April 2 vote against the anti-discrimination bill, a capitol employee warned him that a fellow lawmaker who supported the bill vowed Boehning would become a target for retaliation should he vote no.

However, Boehning has thus far refused to name that lawmaker.

Meanwhile, the only openly gay lawmaker in the state's legislature, Rep. Josh Boschee of Fargo, said he never spoke to Boehning about the vote.

Boschee claims he's been told of a Republican staffer who's been in contact with Boehning via Grindr since he was last elected and who warned Boehning 'there could be consequences for the hypocrisy of [his] vote.'

Boschee also declined to name any names.

As for his coming out, Boehning, who says he's also attracted to women, seemed somewhat relieved.

'The 1,000-pound gorilla has been lifted,' he said. 'I have to confront it at some point.'

Blackmailed? Boehning claims he was blackmailed by a Capitol employee just before his most recent vote against a gay rights bill. Weeks later, he was outed