Focus of Gay-Marriage Fight Is Maine
Published: October 27, 2009, New York Times
Less than a week before Maine voters decide whether to repeal the statefs new
same-sex
marriage law, donations and volunteers are pouring in to sway what both
sides call a nationally significant fight.
Supporters of the marriage law, which the Legislature approved in May, have
far more money and ground troops than opponents, who have been led by the Roman
Catholic Church. Yet most polls show the two sides neck and neck, suggesting
that gay couples here, as in California last year, could lose the right to marry
just six months after they gained it.
Although Mainefs population is a tiny fraction of Californiafs and the battle
here has been comparatively low profile, it comes at a crucial point in the
same-sex marriage movement. Still reeling from last yearfs defeat in California,
gay-rights advocates say a defeat here could further a perception that only
judges and politicians embrace same-sex marriage.
If Mainefs law is upheld, however, it would be the movementfs first victory
at the ballot box; voters in about 30 states have banned same-sex marriage.
Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts and Vermont allow gay couples to marry, but
courts and legislatures, not voters, made it possible.
gItfs a defining moment,h said Marc Mutty, chairman of Stand for Marriage
Maine, which is leading the repeal effort. gWhat happens here in Maine is
going to have a mushrooming effect on the issue at large.h
Maine had planned to allow same-sex marriage starting in September, but put
it off until the referendum is decided. It is the only state with a same-sex
marriage question on its ballot this fall.
The outcome could have particular resonance in California, where same-sex
marriage supporters have been debating how soon to seek a repeal of their own
statefs ban.
Mr. Muttyfs group has repeatedly warned voters that if same-sex marriage
survives in Maine, public schools will most likely teach children about it. That
strategy proved effective in California, and even after Mainefs attorney general
announced this month that the state would not require same-sex marriage to be
taught, opponents have continued raising the possibility.
One of their television
advertisements warns that in Massachusetts, where same-sex marriage has been
legal since 2003, some teachers answer gthoroughly and explicitlyh when students
ask about gay sex.
But Stand for Marriage has not been able to advertise nearly as much as the
lead group campaigning to save the law. That group, Protect Maine Equality, has
raised $4 million, compared with Stand for Marriagefs $2.6 million. Its
overarching message is that all people, including gay men and lesbians, should
be treated equally under the law.
gYou may disagree,h a gray-haired lobsterman says in a Protect
Maine Equality advertisement, gbut people have a right to live the way they
want to live.h
The group has raised much of its money on the Internet, where it has also
recruited volunteers from around the country with a Web site, www.travelforchange.org. Stace
McDaniel, a retired teacher from Atlanta, said he decided to spend a few weeks
volunteering for Protect Maine Equality after attending his first same-sex
wedding this summer.
gI canft believe Ifm doing this,h said Mr. McDaniel, 57, who said he took out
a $5,000 home equity line of credit to finance his trip. gIt was a chance to do
something really important. I donft know anyone in Maine, but here I am.h
One of the volunteers working phones at the Stand for Maine offices last
Thursday was Bonnie Johnstone of Portland, who said she had decided to help
after hearing about the campaign at her Mormon church. But while Mormons played
a huge role in Californiafs same-sex marriage ban — providing reserves of money
and volunteers — they appear to be far less involved here, partly because the
Mormon Church has a much smaller presence in New England.
The repeal effort has drawn a small number of volunteers from other states,
Mr. Mutty said, including a group of students from Brigham
Young University, a Mormon institution in Utah.
Stand for Marriage hired the same consulting firm that ran the California
campaign against same-sex marriage, Schubert Flint Public Affairs, based in
Sacramento, to produce its advertisements. And more than half of its financial
support has come from the National
Organization for Marriage, a conservative Christian group based in New
Jersey that has fought same-sex marriage in other states.
But the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland has played the most tangible role
in the repeal movement, even urging its parishes to collect donations by passing
a second collection plate during Mass.
The Maine Ethics Commission is investigating whether the National
Organization for Marriage has violated the statefs campaign finance laws by
keeping its donors anonymous. The group has responded with a lawsuit challenging
Mainefs financial reporting requirements.
With no big races drawing voters to the polls this year, both sides say that
get-out-the-vote efforts will be crucial. Supporters of same-sex marriage are
counting on college students, while opponents are focusing on older voters from
the statefs more conservative central and northern regions.
gTheir voters are going to be weather-dependent, mood-dependent,h Mr. Mutty
said. gOur voters tend to vote no matter what.h
Since polls have historically undercounted opponents of same-sex marriage —
and none have shown supporters of the law more than a few points ahead, anyway —
Protect Maine Equality is taking nothing for granted.
gWe have every reason to think this will be a razor-thin election,h said
Jesse Connolly, the groupfs campaign manager.
Katie Zezima contributed reporting from Portland,
Me.
A version of this article appeared in print on October 28,
2009, on page A18 of the New York edition.