"Beyer took an interest in local politics after moving to Carterton and returning to New Zealand. She initially succeeded in being elected to a local school board. She became the first transgender mayor in the world, the first female mayor of Carterton, the first Mori mayor in the Wairarapa area, and the first transgender person to be elected mayor when she was chosen in 1995.
Mark Blumsky, the mayor of Wellington at the time, said that she was "extremely competent at her job" in 1996. She won reelection in 1998 with 90% of the vote. Upon her election to the Parliament in 2000, she announced her resignation; in 2004, she said that it was one of her greatest regrets."
In 1999 she became the world's first openly transgender member of parliament. As a member of the Labour Party Beyer supported progressive policies including prostitution law reform, civil unions, anti-discrimination laws and the promotion of Māori rights. She resigned in 2007, and in 2014 unsuccessfully stood for election on behalf of the Mana Party. In 2001 she was featured in "Georgie Girl", a documentary directed by Annie Goldson and Peter Wells.
In 1984, Beyer underwent gender-affirming surgery. She became a part of the Wellington gay nightclub scene, initially as a singer and drag queen performer, and later as a sex worker. After moving to Carterton, in the Wairarapa, she worked as a radio host. Then she started her career in politics. She died on 6 March 2023 at the Mary Potter Hospice in Wellington, at age 65.
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