WA Labor senator Louise Pratt has opened up about life with her transgender partner, Aram Hosie, saying there is nothing unusual about their relationship - it's "just two people who happen to be in love".

"For us, it's not about getting caught up in questions of sexual orientation", she says in an exclusive interview in STM. "It's just about loving and supporting each other.

"We are just two people who happen to be in love."

When Senator Pratt, 40, first met Aram, 29, he was a woman named Renae and their relationship has had to survive his transition to male.

Senator Pratt, who is up for re-election next year, said yesterday her hardest political decision was voting to dump Kevin Rudd as prime minister in 2010 and replace him with Julia Gillard.

Senator Pratt revealed she wept in "anguish" at having to dump Mr Rudd, the man responsible for wresting power from John Howard's Liberals.

But she said Labor had to find a way to win back the confidence of the Australian public particularly here in WA because of the anti-minerals resources rent-tax sentiment.

And Mr Rudd had been the sacrificial lamb, she said.

"It was a very difficult decision," Senator Pratt said. "Yes, absolutely (I cried).

"There was a lot of anguish about what to do."

On election night in 2010, the Federal Member for Perth and Defence Minister, Stephen Smith, told the ABC that had Mr Rudd remained as leader Labor would have won just one seat in WA Fremantle.

Under Ms Gillard, Labor still won just three seats in WA at the 2010 federal poll Perth, Fremantle and Brand.

The Conservatives won the remaining 12 federal seats.

Senator Pratt said she supported Mr Rudd and Ms Gillard as prime minister.



Originally published as Same-sex Senator opens up about love