Portland, MaineThe vote tally in Maine Nov. 4, while not complete and not official, suggests an effort to repeal the state's newly passed marriage-equality law has succeeded.
With 93 percent of the precincts reporting in as of 9:25 a.m. Nov. 4, the "Yes" votes to repeal the law totaled 53 percent of the vote, while the "No" votes against repeal numbered 47 percent. The Bangor Daily News provided the tallies. The state's director of elections, Melissa Packard, said her office would not report results publicly until they are certifiedin about 20 days.
The apparent vote marks a significant defeat for marriage-equality supporters, who were hoping to regain ground lost last year when voters in California narrowly approved Proposition 8 to amend the state constitution to ban gay marriage and undermine a court ruling that had enabled some 18,000 same-sex couples to marry in 2008. ( The vote in that 2008 initiative was 52 percent for, 48 percent against. ) It also appears to provide momentum to the anti-gay marriage movement, which is now attempting to stage an initiative against same-sex marriage in Washington, D.C., and which has a bill pending before the New Hampshire legislature to repeal a bill enacted there earlier this year.
In a ballroom at a Holiday Inn in downtown Portland, "No on 1" campaign manager Jesse Connolly announced to a hushed crowd of a few hundred supporters still on hand at 12:30 a.m. Nov. 4 that the campaign was not conceding defeat and would wait for all the ballots to be counted.
The "Stand for Marriage Maine" group that led the effort to repeal the marriage equality law proclaimed victory.
Dueling campaigns
The campaigns for and against Maine's equal-marriage law had been underway since May when the legislature passed, and the governor signed, the new law enabling same-sex couples to obtain marriage licenses the same as straight couples. Because repeal activists immediately began petitioning for a "Citizens' Veto" measure, the law was put on hold and ballot Question 1 asked voters if they would like to repeal that law.
Many political observers praised the "No on 1" coalition for running a well-organized campaign, headed by Maine natives with considerable experience in Maine politics. At the top of that campaign was Jesse Connolly, a 31-year-old straight married father, on leave from his job as chief of staff for the Maine speaker of the House. Connolly had also run the successful 2005 campaign to vote "No" on a ballot measure seeking to repeal the state's recently passed law prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation. The "No" vote that year won 55 percent to 45 percent.
The key focus of "No on 1" from the start was identifying voters who would vote "No" and making a concerted effort to get those voters to actually cast their ballotseither by absentee, early voting, or at the voting booth on election day. Activists from as far away as Hawaii came to Maine in the last days of the campaign to help with that basic door-to-door, phone-by-phone effort.
But the Yes on campaign had considerable visibility for their messages throughout the state. First, they launched a heavy barrage of television and radio ads warning that approval of same-sex marriage would lead to children being taught about gay marriage in the schools. Then, they staked out the simple message of "Yes on 1" in a highly visible supply of blue and yellow yard signs posted along many of the state's busiest roads. In contrast, "No on 1" often had only a lone pale green sign in noticeably smaller numbers.
At one busy intersection in Portland Nov. 3, five "Yes on 1" activists stood on a median and hoisted "Yes on 1" placards, yelling "Vote Yes on 1No Homosexuals!" to drivers passing by. The lawn surrounding the intersection was bathed in bright blue and yellow "Yes on 1" signs, while the "No on 1" sported only two large hand-painted signs.
On one occasion, a car zipped by and a woman yelled out the window, "I voted no!" But many cars honked and their drivers waved, seeming to signal agreement with the "Yes on 1" position.
Voter turnout was much heavier than expected. The secretary of state had predicted about 25 to 35 percent of registered voters would turn out, but the Daily News estimates at least 57 percent of registered voters participated.
Copyright 2009 Keen News Service
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