election

...now browsing by tag

France: Hollande’s Lead in Vote for President Bodes Well for Marriage Equality

Monday, April 23rd, 2012

Socialist challenger Francois Hollande on Sunday led Nicolas Sarkozy in France’s first round of voting, setting up a May 6 runoff between the two presidential candidates.

Hollande narrowly led Sarkozy with an estimated 3 percentage points, 28.4% to 25.5%. Marine Le Pen trailed with 20 percent of the vote.

“The people have mobilized in a massive way in the selection and a real level of participation. Eighty percent turnout is a big number. What has been shown is that I’m in the lead. I want to thank you all warmly,” Hollande told supporters on Sunday night.

Full Story from On Top Magazine

Find more articles and gay wedding resources in France.

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. We’re also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.

Posted in Uncategorized | No Responses »
Tags: election, france, Francois Hollande, marriage equality, president, socialist

USA: Marriage Equality Not An Issue for Voters in 2012 Election

Wednesday, April 18th, 2012

New data from the Pew Research Center shows marriage equality ranks last among the top concerns of voters ahead of the 2012 elections. Support for LGBT equality is increasing and issues pertaining to the LGBT community are no longer a “wedge” for voters, representing a remarkable turnaround in the last 8 years.

The Pew poll is just the latest piece of evidence pointing to Americans’ broad support for equality. A 2011 Gallup poll found 53 percent of Americans support marriage equality; while a Greenberg Quinlan Rosner poll recently found that an astounding 85 percent of people of faith say their religious beliefs lead them to the conclusion that LGBT people should be treated equally under the law.

“Americans care about job creation and providing for their families. This latest data reinforces the fact that supporting LGBT equality is not a divisive wedge issue, but rather just common sense,” said Human Rights Campaign President Joe Solmonese. “Fair-minded people are increasingly aware that extending rights, benefits, and protections to their LGBT neighbors strengthens the communities they live and work in. To suggest otherwise is a strategy that will fail with voters.”

Full Story from Windy City

Click here for gay wedding resources.

Posted in Uncategorized | No Responses »
Tags: 2012, election, issue, marriage equality, voters

France: Sarkozy Reaffirms Opposition to Marriage Equality Before Election

Tuesday, April 17th, 2012

Incumbent president Nicolas Sarkozy has re-affirmed his opposition to marriage equality ahead of this weekend’s elections in France.

M Sarkozy told France Inter radio that one does not choose to be gay and spoke of the growing social acceptance of gay relationships and said he hated “all forms of homophobia and racism”.

However, he said as he campaigns for a second five-year term, that he views the definition of a family as one mother and one father and he will not go so far as to legally change it.

Full Story from Pink News

Click here for gay wedding resources in France.

Posted in Uncategorized | No Responses »
Tags: election, france, Gay Marriage, marriage equality, opposition, president, sarkozy

AK, USA: Anchorage City Council Votes Against Investigation Into Flawed Election

Thursday, April 12th, 2012

The battle to win LGBT-inclusive non-discrimination laws in Anchorage, Alaska, has come to an end. Well, maybe.

Local NBC affiliate KTUU reports that the Anchorage Assembly voted Tuesday evening 7-4 not to launch an independent investigation into allegations that conservatives committed voter fraud by telling supporters they could register on the same day as the vote and separate claims that ballot shortages unfairly cost equality activists a winning vote.

But not all the Assembly members, even those who voted against an investigation, are convinced there weren’t some shenanigans at play in the vote.

Full Story from Towleroad.com

Click here for gay wedding resources in Alaska.

Posted in Uncategorized | No Responses »
Tags: alaska, anchorage, city council, election, gay rights, investigation, irregularities, vote

AK, USA: Bigots Win in Alaska 58% to 42% With Dirty Campaign Against Gay Rights

Wednesday, April 4th, 2012

Voters in Alaska’s largest city of Anchorage appear to have rejected Proposition 5, which would have “added protections for people regardless of ‘sexual orientation or transgender identity’ to the city’s civil rights laws,” the New York Times reports.

With 97.5 percent of the precincts reporting — and a “surprisingly strong turnout” that overwhelmed some polling stations — the measure failed 58 percent to 42 percent. Prior to the election, polls showed Proposition 5 winning with 50-41 support from voters, but an ugly campaign led by an Anchorage megachurch known as Anchorage Baptist Temple may have taken its toll.

Full Story from Think Progress

Click here for gay wedding resources in Alaska.

Posted in Uncategorized | No Responses »
Tags: alaska, bigots, election, gay rights, vote

France: President Sarkozy, in Tight Election, Has Apparent Change of Heart on Marriage Equality

Friday, March 30th, 2012

France’s President Nicolas Sarkozy may change his views on same-sex marriage in order to defeat his rival in the upcoming elections, the conservative right wing website Life Site News reported.

Sarkozy is falling behind his opponent Francois Hollande, who supports marriage equality, in the polls. Now the French president says he will create a marriage ceremony that would be performed by the government. The new measure would be part of France’s Pact of Civil Solidarity (PACS), which is similar to a civil union in the U.S.

“I am ready to propose — it would be a matter of a decree-that the marriage ceremony, for a homosexual PACS, be made a right,” Sarkozy said in an interview with the French magazine Tetu. He added, “the ceremony would permit a true social acceptance” same-sex relationships.

Full Story from Edge Boston

Click here for gay wedding resources in France.

Posted in Uncategorized | No Responses »
Tags: election, france, marriage equality, pacs, president sarkozy

USA: Ari Fleischer Thinks President Obama Will Endorse Marriage Equality After Election

Wednesday, March 28th, 2012

Former Bush Press Secretary Ari Fleischer predicted that President Obama will evolve towards full support for same-sex marriage after the election. During an interview with CNN’s Anderson Cooper Tuesday night, Fleischer sought to explain Obama’s “flexibility” remark to Russian President Dmitri Medvedev by suggesting that he could change his mind on controversial issues.

Full Story from Think Progress

Click here for gay wedding resources.

Posted in Uncategorized | No Responses »
Tags: ari fleischer, election, marriage equality, president obama

NY: GOP Lawmakers Who Voted for Marriage Equality Facing Challenges

Saturday, March 24th, 2012

New York conservatives are making good on their threat to punish several state Republican lawmakers for voting in favor of marriage equality in 2011. Four Republican State Senators who voted for the bill will not be endorsed by the Conservative Party and three will likely face Republican primary challengers this fall.

The three likely facing challenges are James Alesi, Mark Grisanti, and Roy McDonald. The fourth Republican State Senator that voted for marriage equality, Steven Saland has so far escaped a primary challenge, but will not get the Conservative endorsement. Saland has indicated that there may still be a challenge against him.

Last year, New York Conservative Party Chairman Michael Long threatened to deny legislative candidates endorsements from his organization and he has not backed off that stance since. “Anybody who votes to destroy traditional marriage would not receive our endorsement. That is in cement and there is no change,” he said.

Full Story from NY Alt News

Click here for gay wedding resources in New York.

Posted in Uncategorized | 3 Responses »
Tags: challenges, conservatives, election, marriage equality, mnew york

Conservative Landslide in Spanish Elections Triggers Fears for Marriage Equality Law

Tuesday, November 22nd, 2011

The election of a conservative, Mariano Rajoy, as Spain’s prime minister has some LGBT activists worried he will try to repeal the nation’s marriage equality law.

Rajoy’s Popular Party has filed a suit challenging the law, and he has said he believes it is unconstitutional and that he prefers civil unions to marriage for same-sex couples. However, during the campaign he softened his rhetoric, and his platform did not include repeal of the law, the Bloomberg news service reports.

He told Spanish newspaper El Pais that the Constitutional Court would have the final word on the law, enacted in 2005 under Socialist prime minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero.

Full Story from The Advocate

Click here for gay wedding resources in Spain.

Posted in Uncategorized | No Responses »
Tags: conservatives, election, marriage equality, spain

Spain: Gay Community Fearful Conservatives Will Repeal Marriage Equality After Election

Wednesday, November 16th, 2011

Isabel Descals and her girlfriend raced to get hitched before Sunday’s general elections in Spain almost sure to be won by the anti-gay marriage conservative opposition.

The Popular Party (PP) has appealed to the Constitutional Court against Spain’s gay marriage law, which has allowed over 20,000 gay couples to wed since it was passed by the Socialist government in 2005.

Opposition leader Mariano Rajoy has repeatedly said he prefers the term “civil union” to “marriage” for same-sex unions. “We listened to what the PP says and they are going to take a step backwards, at least when it comes to marriage because Rajoy has said he prefers civil unions,” said Descals, a 40-year-old manager from Valencia.

Full Story from Expatica

Click here for gay wedding resources in Spain.

Posted in Uncategorized | No Responses »
Tags: conservatives, election, marriage equality, repeal, spain