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WA: US Supreme Court Won’t Intervene in R-71 Signature Release

Tuesday, November 22nd, 2011

The U.S. Supreme Court has rejected a request by Protect Marriage Washington that the state be blocked from releasing further copies of Referendum 71 petitions while PMW appeals an earlier Federal District Court decision that ordered their release.

The request had been made to U.S. Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy who apparently referred it to the entire Court. Justice Alito alone would have granted an injunction and Justice Kagan “took no part in the consideration or decision”, making this a 7-1 decision.

“This means that we can once again release these public records,” said Katie Blinn, the state elections co-director.

Full Story from Pam’s House Blend

Click here for gay wedding resources in Washington State.

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Tags: r-71, signatures, us supreme court, washington state

ME: Marriage Equality Campaign Surpasses Signature Goal

Wednesday, November 9th, 2011

A campaign to legalize gay marriage in Maine has gathered sufficient signatures to qualify for next year’s ballot.

Equality Maine, the state’s largest gay rights group, announced on Wednesday that it had collected the signatures of more than 35,000 registered voters on Election Day. The group had earlier announced plans to gather 75,000 signatures, about 18,000 more than needed to qualify. The buffer is a hedge against invalid signatures.

The campaign said it had surpassed its goal and now had almost 100,000 signatures.

Full Story from On Top Magazine

Click here for gay wedding resources in Maine.

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Tags: campaign, Gay Marriage, maine, signatures

Equality Maine Collects Signatures at Polls – 60K Down, 15K to Go

Wednesday, November 9th, 2011

Supporters of same-sex marriage hoped to use the critical mass of voters on Election Day to reach their goal of gathering more than 75,000 petition signatures to put a question on next year’s ballot.

In August, a coalition led by EqualityMaine launched a petition drive for a citizens’ initiative that would ask Mainers the following question on the November 2012 ballot:

“Do you favor a law allowing marriage licenses for same-sex couples that protects religious freedom by ensuring no religion or clergy be required to perform such a marriage in violation of their religious beliefs?”

Full Story from the Bangor Daily News

Click here for gay wedding resources in Maine.

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Tags: maine, marriage equality, petitions, signatures

WA: Gay Activists to Publish R-71 Petition Names Online

Wednesday, October 19th, 2011

A gay rights group has announced it will publish the names of foes of a Washington law that recognizes gay and lesbian couples with nearly all the legal protections of marriage.

On Monday, social conservatives lost their legal case to keep private the names of signers of a petition that attempted to repeal the law.

Conservatives wanted to block the public release of the nearly 138,000 signatures that put Referendum 71 on the state’s ballot in 2009. The ballot initiative asked voters to accept – or reject – an expansion of an existing domestic partnership law approved by lawmakers. Voters opted 53-to-46 to keep the law dubbed “everything but marriage” by the media.

Full Story from On Top Magazine

Click here for gay wedding resources in Washington State.

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Tags: online, petitions, publish, r-71, signatures

WA: Fight Continues Over Release of Petition Signers’ Names

Monday, October 3rd, 2011

He’s known in federal-court documents as John Doe #2, a former youth pastor and unabashed opponent of gay marriage who two years ago signed a petition to put benefits for same-sex couples up to a statewide vote.

Doe is unnamed because Protect Marriage Washington, the conservative organization that ran the Referendum 71 campaign to roll back those benefits, worries about harassment and reprisals against him and 137,500 others who signed the petition.

He is the second of two John Doe plaintiffs in a lawsuit the group filed in 2009 against Washington’s secretary of state. The action succeeded in blocking release of all their names.

Full Story from the Seattle Times

Click here for gay wedding resources in Washington State.

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Tags: petitions, referendum 71, signatures, washington

ME: Marriage Equality Effort More than Halfway to Goal of 75K Signatures

Thursday, September 29th, 2011

A campaign to legalize gay marriage in Maine has gathered more than 40,000 signatures in less than 6 weeks.

Equality Maine, the state’s largest gay rights group, announced on Wednesday that it was more than half of the way toward its goal. To qualify for the 2012 ballot, supporters need to collect the signatures of 57,277 registered voters. However, in order to ensure that there are sufficient valid signatures, the group plans to gather nearly 75,000 signatures.

“The fact that we have gathered more than 40,000 signatures in less than six weeks is nothing short of remarkable,” the group said in an email to supporters. “Simply put, we could not have reached this incredible milestone so quickly without the help of dedicated supporters all over the country like you.”

Full Story from On Top Magazine

Click here for gay wedding resource in Maine.

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Tags: maine, marriage equality, signatures

ME: Group Gets Ok to Collect Signatures for Marriage Equality Initiative

Wednesday, August 17th, 2011

Exact language for a marriage equality ballot initiative in Maine come 2012 was approved today, promising a showdown with antigay organizations like the National Organization for Marriage, which is already funneling money into the state.

The text would legalize same-sex marriage while including religious exemptions, like the ones approved in New York by state lawmakers, according to the Bangor Daily News. Now supporters can get to work on gathering the 57,000 signatures needed to put the question on the ballot.

Full Story from The Advocate

Click here for gay wedding resources in Maine.

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Tags: Gay Marriage, initiative, maine, marriage equality, signatures

WA: Anti Gay Group Tries Again to Block Release of Signatures

Saturday, July 2nd, 2011

World Net Daily has dug up those years-old anonymous internet comments (some from JMG) to illustrate a story about the latest attempt to block the names of those that signed an anti-gay petition in Washington state.

A federal court in Tacoma, Wash., has been asked to order that the names of signatories of a state petition seeking to protect traditional marriage be redacted to protect them from death threats from homosexual activists.

“What is becoming increasingly evident,” said James Bopp of the James Madison Center, “is that some groups and individuals, certainly a minority, have resorted to advancing their cause, not by debating the merits of the issue but by discouraging participation in the democratic process itself.”

Full Story from Joe.My.God

Click here for gay marriage resources in Washington State.

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Tags: petitions, signatures, washington

WA: Hearing Today on Release of Referendum 71 Petition Signatures

Wednesday, August 11th, 2010

Opponents of the state’s expanded domestic partnerships for gay couples are heading back to federal court, hoping to block the release of signed referendum petitions.

U.S. District Judge Benjamin Settle is holding a hearing Wednesday, where he may decide whether to continue blocking the names and addresses of people who signed Referendum 71 petitions. The referendum was approved last fall by voters.

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in June that generally, the release of petition signatures does not violate constitutional rights. However, the court said Protect Marriage Washington could go back to the lower courts and try to prove that the release of their names would put them in danger.

Full Story from the Seattle Times

Click here for gay marriage resources in Washington State.

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Tags: hearing, petitions, r71, referendum 71, release, signatures, signers, wa, washington

WA: Anti Gay Marriage Groups Go to Court Over R71 Signatures… Again

Tuesday, July 20th, 2010

Opponents of the state’s expanded domestic partnership law are going back to court to try to block the release of names of people who wanted the law overturned. On June 24, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that generally, the release of petition signatures does not violate voters’ constitutional rights.

The court ruled now says disclosing names on a petition for a public referendum does not chill the signer’s freedom of speech enough to warrant overturning the state’s disclosure law.

“Voters of Washington want their government operating in open, transparent and accountable ways, and treating petitions as a public record is in keeping with that desire,” said Washington Secretary of State Sam Reed. “The Supreme Court has made it clear that there can be no blanket ban on releasing petitions and that it will be a tall order for challengers to make the case for keeping this information secret.”

Full Story from KOMO News

Click here for gay marriage resources in Washington State.

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Tags: Gay Marriage, marriage equality, petitions, r71, referendum 71, same sex marriage, signatures, washington state