Ballot Measure Filed To Ban Mass. Gay Marriage

[davidinalameda]

http://www.365gay.com/newscon05/08/080205massAmend.htm

A conservative coalition Tuesday filed a ballot initiative that would ban same-sex marriage and civil unions in Massachusetts.

The coalition is led by the Massachusetts Family Institute and the Roman Catholic Church. The attorney general's office must approve the wording on the ballot measure. Then proponents must gather 66-thousand signatures.

The soonest it could put to voters is 2008. The coalition said that it was proceeding with the initiative because its leaders did not believe the legislature would move forward on its own.

[Lexingtonian]

1. don't worry about it

They're only doing this to keep their own morale up and to keep their out-of-state allies happy.

80+% of Massachusetts voters don't see a need for any sort of referendum on this stuff and nearly 60% would vote against rescinding same sex marriage rights. It's over but for some minor formalities. There isn't any meaningful debate about it anymore.

The thing to keep an eye on now is the lawsuit (Cote-Whitacre) to overturn that state law helping other states keep their mini-Domas from being challenged.