Opinionated gays around the world just woke up like sleeper agents. Nominees spanning over 20 categories of fierce and fabulous slaying opened online on Tuesday for the 2026 Queerty Awards.
As of now, voters have the opportunity to make their opinions heard in categories such as Badass, with Doechii, Vivian Wilson, and TS Madison among other, yes, badass LGBTQ+ icons of this past year nominated in the category. In the sports category, the dreamy gay British Olympic skier Gus Kenworthy (whose good looks, I’m not ashamed to admit, influenced my vote in this category) is nominated.
Speaking of sports, Heated Rivalry, the Canadian sports romance TV series that has recently taken the gay world by storm, is being given a nod in the TV Drama category, as is The Pitt, a medical procedural drama with a handful of queer characters. Parvati Shallow, a reality TV icon who recently won last year’s Survivor Australia vs. The World, is nominated in the book category for her memoir, the aptly titled Nice Girls Don’t Win.
The Queerties are the biggest award show specifically for queer people. “The Queerties gives voice to the LGBTQ+ community,” says Scott Gatz, CEO of Q.Digital, which oversees news sites like Queerty and LGBTQ Nation. “It’s the pop culture awards show where queer people honor the best of the best, voting for the talent and creatives who inspire and pave the way for the next generation of queer youth.”
At last year’s ceremony, the hilarious, charismatic, and legendary Bob the Drag Queen hosted the show, while Marissa Bode was awarded the 2025 Groundbreaker Award, and Cole Escola won the 2025 Icon Award.
The annual queer awards show is in its 14th incarnation this year, having recognized the best of the best in queer and queer-adjacent pop culture since 2012. Through February 17, votes can be cast once per device, per day, per category, on Queerty’s website.
