I’m back home in San Francisco, after spending 10 days on the ground in Maine with the “No on 1” campaign. After my time there, I truly believe that – with our help – Maine will become the first state in the nation to successfully defend marriage equality at the ballot box, providing a roadmap for California to repeal Proposition 8. Maine activists have been working hard for five years to pass gay marriage, but events in the last few days now point to what should be an historic victory on November 3rd. With only 19 days left, what I’m seeing from the “Yes on 1” campaign reminds me of where “No on 8” was at this point last year – outgunned by the opposition, unable to control the message and at a loss about what to do. If Question 1 passes, it will be our fault for not having done more. But if Question 1 fails, those of us who get involved will have made history – which is why I hope to go back for the last four days. Here are the reasons for my optimism …

An Early Fundraising Advantage

One reason why I got involved in this effort was that “No on 1” said they only needed $3 million dollars for the entire campaign – a pittance compared with California efforts. “We’re a cheap date,” said campaign manager Jesse Connolly at this year’s Netroots Nation Convention. New fundraising totals that came out this week show that “No on 1” has already raised $2.7 million (with most of the money coming from Maine residents) – and bloggers are planning a big fundraising push for today that should keep them on track with their goal.

The bigger news, however, is that “Yes on 1” reported only raising $1.1 million – with a campaign debt of $400,000 (our side has no debt.) This provoked their spokesman Marc Mutty (who is on loan from the Portland Archdiocese) to send out an urgent message on October 13th that their cause was under “financial assault.” In the mass e-mail, which can be reviewed in full here, Mutty says they had known from the opposition’s superior ground game that our side had been raising more money. But they had “never dreamed the situation was as dire as it is,” and are now urging their supporters to make a “sacrificial contribution” to pass Question 1.

Full Story from Beyond Chron: http://www.beyondchron.org/news/index.php?itemid=7446

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

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. 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.

I’m reluctantly leaving Maine today, after volunteering for the past week with the “No on 1” campaign – talking to voters about gay marriage in the most conservative part of the state. We have supporters everywhere, but in this region the challenge is to drive long distances to reach them – and we need more volunteers to reach everybody. Just last night, I drove two hours away to Washington County – where a terrific group of students at the University of Maine in Machias did a phonebank. I’ve spent a lot of time here on the road – exploring much of Downeast Maine to meet supporters, while listening to Christian radio to get clues about the opposition. Our priority for the region now is volunteer recruitment – turning supporters into activists. More volunteers means reaching more supporters and convincing them to vote early, but it also means more conversations with voters that touch hearts and minds. And while canvassing a precinct in Orono this weekend, I got a few.

In my 13 years of volunteering on campaigns, I have never been in a place – with 21 days left to go – where we have identified enough supporters to win the election. And seldom in my memory have I seen the potential of a race like Maine’s Question 1 have such a national impact on a major issue. With turnout expected to be low, we have prioritized “early voting” – asking supporters to vote early, either by requesting an absentee ballot online or doing “in-person” early voting at their local town clerk’s office. And that has meant driving to remote places to get a feel for how voters live before we talk to them.

In Ellsworth on Sunday night, I met nine volunteers at the Hancock County Democratic Headquarters to do “early vote” phonebanking to our supporters. Ellsworth is in part of the state that Mainers call “Downeast,” further away along the Atlantic Ocean from the Mid-Coast region – where the pace of life is slower. The crew of phonebankers knew many of the voters they were calling, so they gave me the call-sheet for Ellsworth (the largest town in the area) to make sure someone from “away” would have a better experience than some of the smaller towns. You can’t call voters in Deer Isle, they said, unless you live there.

Full Story from Beyond Chron: http://www.beyondchron.org/news/index.php?itemid=7440

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

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. 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.