Obama Campaign Opposes NC Anti-Gay Ballot Measure

President Obama visited North Carolina on Friday and his campaign issued a statement opposing the anti-gay ballot measure called Amendment One which voters will consider on the May 8 primary. As I have discussed here many times before, if passed by voters, Amendment One would have far reaching effects on all families in North Carolina, especially ones headed by same-sex couples, because it purports to only allow one kind of "domestic legal union" to be recognized by the state, and that "domestic legal union" must include a man and a woman. If the amendment were added to the state constitution, it would most definitely pass the legislative or judicial branches of government from enacting marriage equality, and would probably ban state recognition of any kind of same-sex domestic partnership. It's not clear if it would also repeal existing domestic partner statutes already existing in local jurisdictions around the state.

The text of Obama-Biden 2012's statement is:

"While the president does not weigh in on every single ballot measure in every state, the record is clear that the President has long opposed divisive and discriminatory efforts to deny rights and benefits to same sex couples," said Cameron French, his North Carolina campaign spokesman. "That’s what the North Carolina ballot initiative would do – it would single out and discriminate against committed gay and lesbian couples – and that’s why the President does not support it." 

The good news is that Obama's statement comes after other recent news about the fight against North Carolina's heterosexual supremacist Amendment One has intensified, and polling suggests a solid majority opposes the measure.

It is also very good news that the Obama camp has decided to explicitly oppose Amendment One, something LGBT activists have been asking for repeatedly.

It will be interesting to see as we get closer to the election of the campaign will take a position on any of the marriage referenda that will appear on the same ballot, in states like Washington, Maryland, Maine and Minnesota, all of which are likely to be blue states.

Washington: Referendum 74 Final Language Set

You may recall that previously I commented about the draft language of Washington's Referendum 74, a ballot measure which seeks to overturn that state's recently enacted marriage equality law. The heterosexual supremacist Republican Attorney General Rob McKenna (who just happens to be running for Governor) had issued language which included the homophobic concept of "redefine marriage."

Happily, that original draft language was challenged and today new language was released which is more neutral:

Ballot TitleThe legislature passed Engrossed Substitute Senate Bill 6239 concerning marriage for same-sex couples, modified domestic-partnership law, and religious freedom, and voters have filed a sufficient referendum petition on this bill. [10 words]
This bill would allow same-sex couples to marry, preserve domestic partnerships only for seniors, and preserve the right of clergy or religious organizations to refuse to perform, recognize, or accommodate any marriage ceremony. [30 words]
Ballot Measure SummaryThis bill allows same-sex couples to marry, applies marriage laws without regard to gender, and specifies that laws using gender-specific terms like husband and wife include same-sex spouses. After 2014, existing domestic partnerships are converted to marriages, except for seniors. It preserves the right of clergy or religious organizations to refuse to perform or recognize any marriage or accommodate wedding ceremonies. The bill does not affect licensing of religious organizations providing adoption, foster-care, or child-placement. [75 words]

This referendum will be one of four ballot measures involving marriage equality in November 2012. In Maine, Washington and Maryland if the voters vote YES (or APPROVE) they will be legalizing marriage equality. If they vote No they will be returning to the status quo (which is no marriage equality in those states, but comprehensive domestic partnerships in Washington). In Minnesota if the voters vote YES they will insert a ban on marriage equality in the state constitution while if they vote NO same-sex marriage will continue to be banned by statute.

PPIC Poll Says 56% Of CA Likely Voters Support Marriage Equality

Wow! The good polling news on marriage equality just keeps on coming. As this is a presidential election year, it is not surprising that there is a lot of polling going on, and I suspect more and more polls will be including the marriage equality question. Just last week we heard from the Field Poll that 59% of Californians support marriage equality (compared to just 34% who do not), the largest lead (25 points) and highest level of support for same-sex marriage ever recorded in the state by the most trusted name in California polling.

The latest poll is from PPIC and says that 52% of registered voters support allowing same-sex marriage, compared to 41% who don't a margin of +11 for the supporters of equality, which is identical to what the PPIC poll showed last September. Of course the grain of salt here is that the margin of error of the PPIC poll is ±3.8 points, so technically we can not be sure that a majority of registered voters in California support marriage equality. We can however be sure that there are more supporters of marriage equality than people who oppose it.

PPIC also attempts to sample "likely voters," and among this group support for marriage equality is even higher, at 56% with a mere 38%expressing opposition. This is a margin of +18 for the forces for equality. The margin of error on this statistic is ±4.2 points, so this time, according to PPIC, a majority of Californians likely to vote in the June 2012 primary support marriage equality (see figure, below).

Equality California immediately sent out a statement about the new poll which included the graphic at the top of this post highlighting the improvement in the "likely voter" statistic on the question of marriage in the last 3 years.

This was a somewhat curious move, since no one in California is going to be voting on the question of marriage equality anytime soon, since there is no organized effort to put a Proposition 8 repeal measure on the November 2012 ballot due to the fact that the Perry v Brown litigation about the constitutionality of California's same-sex marriage ban is still tied up in the federal courts and is unlikely to be resolved before June 2013 (at the earliest!)

All that being said, two polls within two weeks indicating near-majority support for marriage equality and at the very least significant, double-digit leads for the pro-equality forces are very encouraging and good news!

Initiative To Abolish Death Penalty On CA Ballot

Interesting news! For the third time in 40 years, Californians will vote on whether they would like to abolish the state's death penalty, converting all capital sentences to life in prison without parole. Thanks to a new law signed by Governor Brown, all ballot measures must appear on November statewide general elections, not primary elections.

This will be the first time in over 20 years that Californians will be able to vote on the death penalty, which is has not been in effect since 2006 due to a court order.

The San Francisco Chronicle reports:

Opponents of capital punishment said Thursday they were submitting 800,000 signatures on petitions for an initiative to close the nation's largest Death Row, which has 725 condemned prisoners. The measure needs 504,760 valid signatures to make the ballot.

"California voters are ready to replace the death penalty with life in prison with no chance of parole," declared Jeanne Woodford, who oversaw four executions as warden of San Quentin State Prison. She now heads the anti-capital-punishment group Death Penalty Focus.

It was an unusually optimistic statement in a state whose residents have consistently supported the death penalty. The most recent Field Poll, in September, showed 68 percent support - although respondents in the same survey, when asked their preferred sentence for murder, backed life without parole over death, 48 to 40 percent.

MadProfessah has long been an opponent of capital punishment, not only because of its racially discriminatory application (Black people who kill white people are much more likely to get the death penalty than white people who kill black people) but due to the principle that the legal system can never be 100% accurate and the state should not kill people to show that killing people is wrong. I have been a member of Amnesty International since college, and it works to eliminate the death penalty around the world.

Looking forward to vote YES to eliminate the death penalty and replace it with a much more cost-effective life without parole. I hope all MadProfessah.com readers will join me in voting YES on this ballot measure!

Fight Against NC Anti-Gay Ballot Measure Intesifies

As you may recall, the North Carolina legislature has proposed an anti-gay constitutional amendment that will be placed before voters which would ban not only state recognition of same-sex marriage but also may ban domestic partnerships as well. What I had not maybe emphasized in my previous coverage is that this vote will occur during the statewide primary election on May 8, not the November 6 presidential election.

The specific ballot language of the anti-gay amendment that voters will see on May 8 is:

[] For [] Against
Constitutional amendment to provide that marriage between one man and one woman is the only domestic legal union that shall be valid or recognized by this State.


Of course "domestic legal union" is not defined in the text of the amendment or in North Carolina law so it will be up to judges to define it if the measure passes, but it could most definitely be construed to mean that not only same-sex marriages but opposite-sex or same-sex domestic partnerships would be banned at the state level.

Since the vote is basically 2 months from today, the opposition to the measure has accelerated, with Scott Wooledge using a front-page post on Daily Kos to highlight the polls on the measure and promote the following video, titled "Momentum:



North Carolina has long been a target of heterosexual supremacists because it is the only state in the Southern United States without a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage.

Let's work together to make sure that North Carolina's constitution remains free of the stain of homophobic discrimination on May 9 by donating money to defeat the amendment.

MD: Senate Passes Marriage Equality Bill 25-22!

Woo hoo! The Maryland State Senate completed work on  HB 438, the Civil Marriage Protection Act, by passing the legislation on a 25-22 vote, sending the measure to Democratic Governor Martin O'Malley who has promised to sign it into law.

NGLTF's Executive Director Rea Carey made a statement:

“Maryland and marriage equality will certainly make a lovely couple. Maryland is the Free State, after all. To be able to share and celebrate one's love and commitment both publicly and legally is a lifelong dream for thousands of same-sex couples and their families. It’s thrilling that Maryland is poised to make this a reality by becoming the latest state to treat its families fairly. This has been a long journey of changing hearts and minds, of breaking down walls, of shining a spotlight on our common humanity. Congratulations to Equality Maryland, Marylanders for Marriage Equality and all those who have been part of the journey leading to this victory.”

By this action Maryland will likely become the 8th state to legalize marriage equality. However, as I noted earlier in a blog post, it is not clear if the law will actually go into effect January 1, 2013 due to the referendum process in Maryland.

Heterosexual supremacists have until May 31st to gather 55,736 signatures to put the measure up for a vote on the November 6, 2012 ballot. Whether same-sex couples will be able to get married will depend on the outcome of the vote.

WA Referendum 74 and 2012 Marriage Equality Outlook

Referendum 74 is the name of the potential ballot measure which voters in Washington State will face on November 6, 2012 to determine whether they want to APPROVE or REJECT the marriage equality bill recently passed by the Washington State legislature and signed by Governor Chris Gregoire on Monday February 13.

According to the Washington Secretary of State, what voters will see is:

Ballot Title
The legislature passed Engrossed Substitute Senate Bill 6239 concerning marriage [and voters have filed a sufficient referendum petition on this bill.] 

This bill would redefine marriage to allow same-sex couples to marry, modify existing domestic-partnership laws, allow clergy to refuse to solemnize or recognize marriages and religious organizations to refuse to accommodate marriage celebrations. 

Should this bill be 

___ Approved 

___ Rejected

Ballot Measure Summary
The bill would redefine marriage to allow same-sex couples to marry, apply marriage eligibility requirements without regard to gender, and specify that laws using gender-specific terms like “husband” and “wife” include same-sex spouses. Clergy could refuse to solemnize or recognize any marriages. Religious organizations and religiously affiliated educational institutions could refuse to accommodate weddings. The measure would not affect licensing of religious organizations providing adoption, foster-care, or child-placement. Domestic partnerships for seniors would be preserved. 

The reference to domestic partnerships is significant (as is the use of the word "redefine" but we'll get to that in a moment). In 2009, Washington State passed a comprehensive domestic partnership statute which included same-sex couples and opposite sex couples where one partner is over 65. That law was also subject to a referendum, known as Referendum 71. Referendum 71 was approved by voters 53% to 47%.
Most people expect Referendum 74 to also be approved as well, but you never know because voters have never voted in favor of a ballot measure which would legalize marriage equality. There have been 31 statewide ballot measures since 1998 on the issue of same-sex marriage and the pro-equality side has one once (in Arizona in 2006 and that was then overturned by another ballot measure in 2008). It is true, however, that usually the issue on the ballot has been whether to ban same-sex marriage outright, not whether should same-sex marriage be illegal or legal. The only votes where that has occurred are in Maine 2009 (Question 1: No 53%, Yes 47%) and California (Proposition 8: No 52.3%, Yes 47.7%). Maine's Question 1 is basically identical to Washington's Referendum 74 while California's Proposition 8 was an initiative constitutional amendment taking away the right of same-sex couples to marry in the future (or have their out of state marriage recognized by California) 173 days after the California Supreme Court ruled that the California constitution included such a right. Proposition 8 has been declared to violate the United States Constitution by a 3-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

Interestingly, Maine voters will have an opportunity to affirmatively legalize marriage equality at the ballot box again in November 2012, and it is very likely an identical situation to Washington's Referendum 74 and Maine's Question 1 will occur in Maryland this November.

So, there will most likely be 3 opportunities for voters to have the specific up or down question on ending discrimination against same-sex couples in marriage this November (Maine, Washington and Maryland).

Polling in the first two situations (Proposition 8 in 2008 and Question 1 in 2009) and subsequent polling nationally and in other states have showed that the wording of the specific question presented to voters makes a huge difference in how they respond. This is why the choice of the words "redefine marriage" by Washington State Attorney general Rob McKenna (who is a declared Republican candidate for Governor) is noteworthy (and problematic). Marriage is not being "redefined" when same-sex couples are allowed to receive civil marriage licenses in addition to opposite-sex couples. To believe otherwise is to believe in a heterosexual supremacist talking point. Exactly the same piece of paper from the government will be given to same-sex couples as are given to opposite-sex couples, if the legal ban on providing such marriage licenses is ended. This piece of paper has nothing to do with any church or mosque or synagogue.

Additionally, one's person's ability to marry has absolutely no impact on anyone else's marriage. This is self-evident. There are tens of thousands of couples who are legally married around the country. How has this impacted the other legally married couples in opposite-sex relationships? The people of Massachusetts were the first to experience marriage equality in 2004 and they readily acknowledge this truth (67% said in a poll that marriage equality in 2004 has had little or no impact on their lives). Whether same-sex couples are issued civil marriage licenses by a state has no impact on someone's religious views about what marriage should be. To believe otherwise is to impose one's own religious views on a secular society, forcing one religion's views on people who believe otherwise, and that itself violates religious freedom!

WA: Gov. Gregoire Signs Marriage Equality Bill!

As promised, Democratic Governor Chris Gregoire of Washington, signed the marriage equality bill into law today which was passed by the legislature last week. The bill will not go into effect until June 7th at the earliest, and with her signature today opponents now have the opportunity to collect 120, 557 signatures by that date to place a referendum on the enactment of SB 6239 on the November 2012 ballot. The referendum process prevents the law from going into effect unless and until the referendum is approved by the voters. If you're feeling a sense of déjà vu you are not alone. In 2009, Washington State enacted a comprehensive domestic partnership statute (which on the east coast they call "civil union" or an "everything but the title marriage" law) that became subject to a referendum, Referendum 71.

The ballot measure was later approved by voters and went into effect on December 7, 2009. However, since we all know that separate but equal does not work, Washington marriage equality advocates continued to work for full equality and now have convinced the Legislature and Governor to enact a marriage equality bill. It is quite likely that Evergreen State voters will again approve of equality for same-sex couples and become the first state to enact marriage equality at the ballot box in the process.

If so, Washington will join Massachusetts, Connecticut, Iowa, Vermont, New Hampshire, District of Columbia and New York as granting equal marriage rights to same-sex and opposite-sex couples.

MAINE: Back To The Ballot For Marriage Equality

As expected, Equality Maine announced today that they have decided to place a measure on the November 2012 ballot which would enact marriage equality. This is a big deal, because in 2009 after an expensive Proposition 8-inspired campaign in which both sides spent over $9 million combined, Maine voters rejected a marriage equality measure enacted by the state legislature by voting down Question 1 53% to 47%.

From the press release:

Augusta – Today, advocates for allowing same-sex couples to legally marry in Maine announced plans for a Citizens Initiative to enact a marriage equality law, delivering more than 105,000 signatures from Maine voters who want the issue on the November 2012 ballot to the Secretary of State’s office.

The announcement follows two years of outreach and conversations with Mainers about the freedom to marry, statewide polling showing steadily increasing support for allowing same-sex couples to marry – which now stands at 54 percent – and intensive field organizing in preparation for the campaign.

“The number of signatures we gathered and the thoughtful conversations we’ve been having with voters tell us that Mainers are eager to speak on this question again,” said Betsy Smith, executive director of EqualityMaine. “Our polling shows a 54% majority of support for same-sex marriage in Maine. Many Mainers have changed their minds and want a chance to bring equality and fairness to our state.”

So Maine is one of the states where advocates for marriage equality will be playing offense in the fight to end the exclusion of same-sex couples from civil marriage. Others are Maryland, Washington and New Jersey.

There will be anti-equality efforts in North Carolina and Minnesota.

Haters Effort To Repeal CA DREAM Act #Fail

Ha-ha! This is excellent news. The California DREAM Act was signed into law by Governor Jerry Brown last year and the racist xenophobes started circulating petitions to put a referendum on the November 2012 ballot. The CA Dream Act  allows undocumented youth to receive state financial aid and scholarships for college.

Today comes words that the haters have had a major #fail!

Opponents of the California Dream Act have failed to gather enough petition signatures to qualify an initiative for the November ballot that would have repealed the legislation, organizers said Friday. 

Volunteers and a small group of paid signature gatherers had hoped to collect more than 500,000 valid signatures by this week to stop the legislation, which gives illegal immigrants access to state financial aid at public universities and community colleges. They were able to gather nearly 450,000 signatures, Assemblyman Tim Donnelly (R-San Bernardino) said in a statement. 

Supporters of the California Dream Act have argued that many young undocumented immigrants came to the country through no fault of their own; those opposed stressed that the state should not use scarce resources on illegal immigrants.

The haters can still try and get signatures to put an initiative statute on the ballot in November but they have to collect twice as many signatures, and they have to have that done at least 150 days before the election.

I think even if the DREAM Act was up for debate on the ballot that California voters would re-affirm their commitment to equal opportunity and fairness.

Prop 8 Repeal Initiative Can Begin Signature Gathering

The organization Love Honor Cherish announced this week that it has been given the go-ahead by the Attorney General of California to begin circulating ballot petitions to repeal Proposition 8, the constitutional amendment which purports to ban people of the same sex from marrying in California.

The text of the amendment is:

This amendment would amend an existing section of the California Constitution.  Existing language proposed to be deleted is printed in strikeout type.  Language proposed to be added is printed in underlined type.

Section 1.  To protect religious freedom, no court shall interpret this measure to require any priest, minister, pastor, rabbi, or other person authorized to perform marriages by any religious denomination, church, or other non-profit religious institution to perform any marriage in violation of his or her religious beliefs. The refusal to perform a marriage under this provision shall not be the basis for lawsuit or liability, and shall not affect the tax-exempt status of any religious denomination, church or other religious institution.

Section 2.  To provide for fairness in the government’s issuance of marriage licenses, Section 7.5 of Article I of the California Constitution is hereby amended to read as follows: Sec. 7.5.  Only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California. Marriage is between only two persons and shall not be restricted on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, gender, sexual orientation, or religion.

The ballot summary is:

Reinstates Right of Same-Sex Couples to Marry. Initiative Constitutional Amendment.

Summary Date: 12/15/11 | Circulation Deadline: 05/14/12 | Signatures Required: 807,615

Proponent: Thomas B. Watson

Repeals the current provision in California's Constitution that states only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California. Provides that marriage is between only two persons and shall not be restricted on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, gender, sexual orientation, or religion. Clarifies that the initiative shall not be interpreted to require any priest, minister, pastor, rabbi, or other person to perform a marriage in violation of his or her religious beliefs. Summary of estimate by Legislative Analyst and Director of Finance of fiscal impact on state and local government: Over the long run, this measure would likely have little fiscal impact on state and local governments. (11-0058) (Full Text)

Of course, Love Honor Cherish also went forward with a signature-gathering campaign in two years ago in Winter 2009-Spring 2010 to repeal Proposition 8 which failed miserably. Gathering enough signatures to get a measure on the ballot in California is a resource-intensive task, not one that has been achieved by a mainly volunteer or unpaid effort in years.

This effort does not have the backing of any of the state's major LGBT organizations (like Equality California and the L.A. Gay and Lesbian Center). The proponents have until May 14, 2012 to gather well over a million signatures, in the hopes that 807, 615 will be valid.

I agree that Propsition 8 should be repealed but I do not think that the LGBT community of California has had a discussion about what it would take to repeal Proposition 8 and I think it is incredibly naive and presumptious of one organization to think that they can make the decision for all LGBT Californians to put our rights up for a public vote.

I will not be signing the petition and I urge you not to as well.

EQME Says They Have Signatures For 2012 Marriage Initiative

Game on! Equality Maine has announced that they have gathered twice as many signatures as needed to put an initiative on the November 2012 which would legalize marriage equality.

The specific ballot question language is:

Do you favor a law allowing marriage licenses for same-sex couples that protects religious freedom by ensuring no religion or clergy be required to perform such a marriage in violation of their religious beliefs?

The Portland Press-Herald reports:

Betsy Smith of EqualityMaine says 396 volunteers collected more than 36,000 signatures on Election Day, bringing the total number to 100,000. That's more than enough petitions to get gay marriage onto the statewide ballot if the group chooses to do so. Smith says the group will make its decision on a referendum in January. 

Maine is currently the only state in New England that doesn't allow either gay marriage or civil unions. Maine lawmakers approved a gay marriage law, but it was overturned by a statewide referendum in 2009.

Recent polls in Maine have shown support for marriage equality at 53%. Hopefully Maine goes forward with a pro-marriage equality measure in 2012, which will at least counter-balance the anti-marriage equality measures in Minnesota and North Carolina.

Initiative Filed To Repeal LGBT Parts of SB48

Here we go again! Not happy with failing to obtain enough signatures to force a referendum to overturn the FAIR Education Act at the ballot box next year, the heterosexual supremacists have now filed a ballot measure (an initiative statute) to remove the section of the law which applies to the LGBT community.

The San Francisco Chronicle's Politics blog reports:

Opponents of the state law that mandates the inclusion of the contributions of  lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people in social science instruction in public schools have filed two initiatives with the attorney general to eliminate the law and to give parents the ability to opt out of classroom teaching on the topic.

The initiatives come from two groups that are not affiliated with the organization that failed to qualify a referendum on the law, SB48, last month. The leader of that effort said they will also file an initiative with the attorney general on the law in the near future.

[...]

One of the proposals would simply strip out the inclusion of LGBT people in the section of law that mandates teaching about other minority groups. SB48 also included a new mandate for instruction about people with disabilities, and that would stand under the initiative.

The second proposal adds the ability of parents to pull their kids from instruction in “social science and family life” if it conflicts “with the religious training and beliefs of a parent or guardian.”

If one of these initiatives qualifies it means that there will be an anti-gay ballot fight in November 2012 after all.

Cal Sup Ct Rules 7-0 Initiative Proponents Have Standing

The long-awaited decision by the California Supreme Court on the question of whether initiative proponents have the right to defend their measures in court when elected officials like the Governor and Attorney General refuse to defend them was released today.

The Court ruled unanimously that initiative proponents do have standing under state law to defend their ballot initiatives.

As usual, Chris Geidner of Metro Weekly has the best analysis:

The California Supreme Court, in an opinion written by Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye, was very clear about its answer: 

[W]e respond to the question posed by the Ninth Circuit in the affirmative. In a postelection challenge to a voter-approved initiative measure, the official proponents of the initiative are authorized under California law to appear and assert the state's interest in the initiative's validity and to appeal a judgment invalidating the measure when the public officials who ordinarily defend the measure or appeal such a judgment decline to do so. 

The decision came about resulting from a request by the Ninth Circuit in the ongoing challenge to Proposition 8 brought by the American Foundation for Equal Rights. The case, in which the trial court judge struck down Proposition 8 as unconstitutional in August 2010, is on appeal before the Ninth Circuit. The Ninth Circuit appeals court sought to have the California Supreme Court assist it with the case by answering these questions about state law through the process of asking a certified question. The California Supreme Court accepted the invitation to answer the certified question and heard oral arguments on the question on Sept. 6.

As the California Supreme Court found the proponents to have a "particularized interest" and "the authority to assert the State's interest," the Ninth Circuit now is likely to find that the proponents do have standing under federal law to bring the appeal -- although the court need not do so. At that point, the appeal of the Perry trial court decision -- the "merits" decision from the trial court that Proposition 8 is unconstitutional -- could go forward.

It's unfortunate that the Court opened up the can of worms to allow all initiative proponents to defend their statutes under state law. Considering how many ballot measures we have in California, this is an incredibly important decision.

That being said, it is very exciting that now we basically must get a ruling from the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in the Perry v. Brown case which will give us a federal appellate court level ruling on the question of marriage equality.

POLL: Support for Marriage Equality in Maine

Well, well! Despite being rejected at the polls on election day 2009 when Maine's Question 1 (voiding that state's recently passed marriage equality law) was approved by voters 53% to 47%, marriage equality is now enjoying majority support in the state as the 2012 federal elections approach, and Equality Maine considers going back to the ballot with a marriage equality measure.

A new poll from PPP shows that 51% of Maine respondents think that same-sex marriage should be legal, but before one gets too confident, I would point out that this is within the margin of error of ±3.8 percentage points of this poll (673 voters contacted between 10/28-10/31/2011).So, it is true that more Maine voters support marriage equality than oppose it, but the poll does not indicate majority support for marriage equality in Maine yet. Hopefully, that will be the case one year from now, on election day 2012!

Hat/tip to Joe.My.God

WA: New Poll Shows Support For Marriage Equality

LGBT Think Progress reports about a new poll in Washington state which demonstrates that marriage equality supporters may have more terrain to play offense on next year. 

Of voters surveyed, 55 percent indicated they would uphold a Legislature-approved same-sex marriage law if it were challenged by referendum. The poll found 38 percent would oppose the law and 7 percent were undecided.

However, additional questions in the poll found that 44 percent of voters surveyed said gays and lesbians should have the same legal right as straight couples to marry; and 22 percent said they should have the same legal rights as married couples, but it should not be called marriage.

Seventeen percent said there should be no legal recognition of gay and lesbian couples. The wide-ranging poll touched on several other issues, including the state budget shortfall.

The Washington Poll surveyed 938 registered voters statewide from Oct. 10-30. It has a plus or minus 3.2 percentage points margin of error.

There are anti-gay marriage ballot measures qualified for the 2012 election in Minnesota and North Carolina.

There are likely to be pro-gay marriages ballot measures in Maine, Maryland, Washington and possibly Oregon.

I predict that there will be more Americans living under marriage equality laws at he end of 2012 than at the end of 2011.

Names Of Referendum 71 Signers Released

Finally! After losing a Supreme Court decision Doe v. Reed last year, the heterosexual supremacists who forced the voters of Washington State to vote on whether that state's comprehensive domestic partnership law should go into effect have lost their battle to keep secret the names of the voters who signed the petitions to get the measure on the ballot.

A federal judge ordered the state of Washington to release the names on Monday, and the Secretary of State released a DVD with 138, 000 names of petitioners to the press.

The Seattle Post-Intelligencer reports:

The 138,000 people who signed petitions to force a vote on a 2009 domestic partnership law are unlikely to face harassment if their names are disclosed a judge said Friday while ordering the release of signatures.

U.S. District Judge Benjamin Settle said the petitioners who advocated for privacy provided only a few experiences of indecent statements and other uncomfortable conversations. Also, there was only speculation that those incidents were connected to the issue, he said.

Disclosure would become the exception, rather than the rule, if just a few instances of harassment were used as the standard for preventing the release of names, Settle said.

And the heterosexual supremacists lost the referendum campaign in 2009 as well. Washington voters approved the referendum (upheld Washington's comprehensive domestic partnership law) and it has been in effect since November 2009.

POLL: NC Anti-gay relationship amendment ahead 61-34

After years of being stopped by a Democratic majority in one House of the North Carolina legislature, a constitutional amendment to ban the recognition of "[any] domestic legal union between members of the same sex (i.e. same-sex marriages and domestic partnerships) was passed by the new Republican majority September 12th.

This week comes the bad news that despite a majority of North Carolinians either supporting marriage equality or domestic partnerships almost two-thirds support this virulently anti-gay constitutional amendment:

PPP's first look at the proposed marriage amendment in North Carolina since the legislature placed it on the ballot finds it leading 61-34. Republicans are overwhelmingly in favor of it (80/17) and independents (52/43) and Democrats (49/44) support it as well, although by more narrow margins.

The interesting thing is that 51% of this same set of voters supports legal recognition for gay couples. 22% favor gay marriage and another 29% civil unions, with only 46% completely opposed to granting same sex couples legal recognition.  The problem for those trying to defeat the amendment is that 37% of voters who support gay marriage or civil unions are still planning to vote for it.  That suggests a lot of folks aren't familiar with how wide reaching the proposed amendment would be and it gives those fighting it a chance- they just have to get their message out effectively to the majority of North Carolinians who do support legal recognition for gay couples that the proposal goes too far.

This is really a classic example of how small differences in poll question wording can lead to huge differences in how people respond. Last month we asked the following question "State legislators have proposed an amendment to the North Carolina Constitution that would prohibit the recognition of marriage, civil unions, or domestic partnerships for gay and lesbian couples. If the election was held today,would you vote for or against this amendment?" When you ask it that way only 30% of voters are supportive and 55% are opposed. Voters are against 'prohibiting' recognition for gay couples. But if you word it in such a way that all you're doing is defining marriage as between one man and one woman, voters are ok with that.  You're asking about the same thing in both cases, but the semantics make a huge difference and Republicans clearly know what they're doing with the language that's on the ballot.

One key group of voters those fighting the amendment will really have to reach out to is black Democrats. 70% of them support it to 25% opposed. White Democrats on the other hand oppose it by a 57/37 margin.

The only anti-gay marriage amendment to have been defeated was in Arizona, and it similarly attempted to ban both marriages and domestic partnerships. That measure failed in 2006 when senior citizen groups came out against the measure. But in that state the measure was actually stripping people of exstant domestic partnership benefits. I don't believe North Carolina has any state recognition of same-sex couples (or opposite-sex couples) outside of marriage, so the amendment is banning a "theoretical" problem which will be easy to demonize in  Bible Belt state.

#FAIL! No Referendum On FAIR Education Act

Well, well! The heterosexual supremacists at StopSB48.com have officially admitted that they have failed to collect enough signatures to place a referendum on the enactment of the FAIR Education Act on the 2012 ballot.

This is great news because despite the hysterical pleadings of StopSB48.com and the (mostly religious) professional homophobes who supported the signature gathering campaign, all the bill would do is make sure that the contributions of LGBT citizens are included when the historical contributions of other marginalized groups are also taught. This is what our opponents call "the homosexual agenda."

Saturday Politics: Brown Signs Bill Moving All Measures To November Ballots

This is huge news. No longer will conservatives be able to put crazy initiatives (or constitutional amendments) on the California ballot and hope that it appears on an election ballot which is particularly conservative.

Thanks to a bill signed into law by Governor Jerry Brown, all ballot measures will have to appear on the November general election ballot of the next even-numbered year (or special elections called by the legislature), not primary elections.

The Scaramento Bee reports:

Chuck Bell, a GOP attorney, submitted a request for title and summary for a referendum on the bill within hours of Brown's announcement. 

But the political implications of the measure may not have resonated outside Sacramento, even among Republicans. According to a recent Field Poll, registered Republicans support the proposed change by a 15-point margin, and 56 percent of voters overall favor it. 

After the poll was released, Brown said of Republican lawmakers' opposition, "I think they're a little out of touch with their own members, because obviously the Republicans seem to want that."
The bill is also controversial because it would delay until 2014 a "rainy-day fund" measure approved as part of a budget agreement last year. Republicans characterized the legislation as a take-back by Democrats.

The immediate impact on LGBT rights means that 1) the earliest Proposition 8 will be repealed is the 2014 gubernatorial election and 2) if the FAIR Education Act referendum people get enough signatures by their deadline of Wednesday October 12th, it will appear on the November 2012 ballot, not June.