The state’s latest expansion of domestic partnerships for gay couples was hanging in limbo Friday as opponents announced a final push to force a public vote, calling their effort so far “too close to call.”

In a statement to supporters, organizers of the Referendum 71 campaign said they will have at least the minimum 120,577 petition signatures needed by today to qualify for the ballot.

However, R-71 organizer Gary Randall said the campaign doesn’t have enough extra signatures to act as a cushion for erroneous or duplicate petition signatures, which must come from registered Washington voters.

Full Story from The Seattle Times

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There is a push by the anti-gay forces in the state of Washington to repeal the Domestic Partnership legislation recently passed by the legislature. Anti-gay organizations are trying to collect enough signatures to bring Referendum 71 to the ballot. This referendum seeks to repeal the Domestic Partnership Expansion Law of 2009, passed by the legislature, that gives registered domestic partners wherever they live in Washington many of the rights and protections already enjoyed by legally married couples.

If the backers of Referendum 71 collect enough signatures to get it on the November ballot, then the question on the ballot will be: Should this bill be approve or rejected?

The anti-gay organizations are using paid signature gatherers in attempt to collect the required number of signatures needed to put the referendum on the ballot. The signatures are due this Saturday.

Full Story from Daily Kos

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Romania’s Parliament has moved to ban gay marriage.

Roger Kiska, a member of Alliance Defense Fund’s legal counsel, is stationed in Europe. He says that Romania adopted a strong civil code banning gay marriage in law.

“It’s defined throughout the code — spouse as between a man and a woman,” he explains. “It forbids these backdoor, so-called same-sex ‘marriages’ where Romanian citizens or foreigners come into the country and ask that their marriage be recognized by the country. It also does the same with civil unions.”

Full Story from One News Now

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The province will still seek a legal opinion on proposed legislation allowing marriage commissioners to refuse to perform same-sex marriages for religious reasons, despite a court ruling censuring such denials.

A Court of Queen’s Bench ruling, publicly released Thursday, upheld a decision by a human rights tribunal that found Regina marriage commissioner Orville Nichols had discriminated against a same-sex couple by declining to marry them.

Justice Minister Don Morgan said the decision hasn’t altered plans to ask the Saskatchewan Court of Appeal to rule on the constitutionality of a law that would exempt marriage commissioners from performing same-sex marriages for religious reasons. The court will consider two versions of proposed legislation — one with an exemption for those who were commissioners when gay marriage was legalized in 2004 and the other giving an exemption to all commissioners. No date for that hearing has been set.

Full Story from The Star Phoenix

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Kathy Griffin is fond of talking about “her gays” on her snarky reality show “My Life on the D-List.” But she takes her affection a step further on this week’s episode, airing Monday on Bravo.

In keeping with the theme of her show — bald-faced attempts to do anything to make herself more popular — at first, Griffin sees her activism regarding Prop 8 as something of a photo-op, a chance to really woo her queer constituency.

“Our state was progressive enough to legalize gay marriage but stupid enough to let the Mormon Church find a proposition to put it back on the ballot,” she deadpans with characteristic sarcasm. But before long, the show turns into — and boy, it gags me to say this — a “very special episode.”

Full Story from the Dallas Voice

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The city of San Francisco asked a federal judge today for the right to become an official party in a lawsuit challenging California’s ban on same-sex marriage.

City Attorney Dennis Herrera said San Francisco is “singularly well-prepared to become a co-plaintiff” in the lawsuit filed in federal court in May by a lesbian couple from Berkeley and a gay couple from Burbank.

Herrera said the city has developed a “wealth of evidence” and a “unique public sector perspective” in previous state court battles over gay and lesbian marriage.

Full Story from CBS5.com

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After opponents of gay rights kicked off an effort this summer to repeal Washington’s new “everything but marriage” law, gay rights backers in Clark County have found an unusual champion.

It’s the YWCA, the nonprofit group that describes its goal as “Eliminating racism, empowering women.”

As part of an effort to broaden its political identity, the Vancouver-based YWCA of Clark County has become the most prominent local voice against Referendum 71, a proposed ballot issue whose backers are still rushing to gather more than 120,577 signatures by Saturday afternoon.

Full Story from Columbian.com

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The annual meeting of Quakers is to consider whether to request legal authority to register civil partnerships in the same way as marriages.

They will also consider whether to revise Quaker Faith and Practice, the book of Christian discipline of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) in Britain, to include equal treatment of marriage and other committed partnerships.

First published in 1738, the book is revised each generation.

Full Story from Pink News

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Members of a social conservative group asked the Wisconsin Supreme Court on Thursday to invalidate the state’s new domestic partnership law.

The lawsuit claims the law allowing gay and lesbian couples to form domestic partnerships violates the constitutional ban on gay marriage and civil unions approved by voters in 2006.

Gov. Jim Doyle, a Democrat, signed the law as part of the state budget last month. Starting Aug. 3, same-sex couples will be able to register with counties to receive dozens of the same legal protections as married couples, including the right to inherit assets, make hospital visits and take medical leave to care for an ill partner.

Full Story from the Greenbay Press Gazette

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Porterville city councilmen rehashed a contentious issue Tuesday night — gay marriage. Former mayor Cameron Hamilton proposed that council members show adamant opposition to a bill circulating among state legislators.

Senate Bill 54 proposes same-sex couples married outside the state, and before the passage of Proposition 8, are warranted the equal recognition as married spouses in California.

The council formerly engaged with a state issue on Sept. 2, 2008 by adopting a resolution supporting Proposition 8. The ballot measure, which was passed by California voters in November, codifies that marriage in California is only between a man and a woman. This time the vote was not unanimous.

Full Story from RecorderOnline

Planning to marry your partner? Click here for gay marriage resources.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com with “subscribe blog” as the subject. Or find us on Facebook – just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you’ll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We’re also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.