On May 6, 2009, the Governor of Maine signed the law ending discrimination in marriage for same-sex couples, but it is already being threatened. Our fight to protect civil rights through marriage equality is just beginning out here in Maine. Almost immediately, national opponents of equality declared they wanted to turn back the clock and are working tirelessly to place a measure on this November’s ballot – modeled after California’s Prop 8 – to take away the right of gay and lesbian couples to marry in Maine.
The national movement for civil rights is at a critical juncture on the issue of marriage equality. The phrase as Maine goes, so goes the nation has been used to describe Maine’s bell weather potential and we expect it to ring true on national battleground for marriage equality. When this referendum goes to the ballot in November, Maine could become the first state to successfully defend marriage equality by a popular vote.
We are very proud to show off our new website to at http://mainefreedomtomarry.com/
http://www.swingstateproject.c…
Please post elsewhere.
If it was just a discussion of the pros/cons of the marriage equality debate, I would agree that it isn’t for this site.
But the Maine and national right wing is taking a page from the Rove playbook by attempting to use a referendum to polarize voters and gain partisan advantage with marriage as a wedge issue.
The Maine referendum will be an important vote in determining if the marriage issue will have political legs for the right wing in the face of the dramatic gains for marriage equality this year (Vermont, Iowa, New Hampshire and Maine). It will play a major role in shaping the national political environment for the next 2 election cycles.
The tag for this site is “Campaign and election news – covering key races around the country” — by any definition, the marriage referendum in Maine falls under that category.