TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Sponsors of a proposal to ban gay marriage in Florida said Thursday they have gathered enough signatures to put the measure before voters next year.
If the required 611,009 signatures are verified, the proposed amendment to the state constitution would go on the November 2008 ballot.
The state Division of Elections Web site showed the group was still 253 signatures short of its goal. John Stemberger, an Orlando lawyer who heads a coalition of groups sponsoring the proposal, said elections officials had not yet verified all the signatures but he expected them to by the end of the day.
If the measure goes on the ballot and passes, Florida would become the 28th state to ban gay marriage with a constitutional amendment.
Florida already has a state law banning gay marriages, but Stemberger said putting it in the constitution would prevent judges from overturning the statute.
"We believe kids need a mom and a dad, very simply," Stemberger said. "Moms and dads bring something different to the table. Dads are not optional."
Opponents of the measure say the amendment would go beyond the existing law and affect unmarried heterosexual couples, too.
"It's government saying this is the only sanctioned relationship that you can have," Stephen Gaskill, spokesman for Florida Red and Blue, an organization created to oppose the proposal.
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5hZmLBrL36NObNyMR0ghXN7vB5hYwD8TGPKDO2