Both sides of the debate over same-sex marriage in Maine are scrambling to build grassroots support and pools of money for what promises to be an intense campaign between now and the November election.
At issue is a law enacted by the Legislature and signed by Gov. John Baldacci in May which allows same-sex marriage in Maine while preserving the rights of religious institutions to choose their level of involvement.
Opponents of same-sex marriage vowed to attack the law with a citizen-initiated petition to put a question on the November ballot. Last Friday, the Stand for Marriage Maine Coalition submitted more than 100,000 signatures to the Secretary of State’s Office. State workers must now verify that at least 55,087 of those signatures are from valid Maine voters.
If the signatures pass the test, the following question will top the November ballot: “Do you want to reject the new law that lets same-sex couples marry and allows individuals and religious groups to refuse to perform these marriages?”
Bob Emrich, who has led the fight against same-sex marriage, said Friday that the Legislature’s approval of the law contradicted the will of the majority of Mainers.
“It was not, as some have claimed, a proud day for Maine,” said Emrich, according to a transcript of his remarks. “Maine has come dangerously close to trading time-honored tradition and social practice for the fad of a minority.”
To counter the progress of the Stand for Marriage Maine Coalition, supporters of the measure have been collecting their own signatures.
On Friday, a group calling itself the NO on 1/Protect Maine Equality coalition claimed it has collected more than 60,000 pledges to vote against the people’s veto. Those signatures are not subject to verification, but Mark Sullivan, spokesman for the group, said they send a strong message that there is wide support in Maine for allowing same-sex couples the right to wed.
“It’s an effort to demonstrate our grassroots support,” said Sullivan Monday. “We’ve had scores of volunteers working on this. We’ll be mounting a serious campaign that we know we’re going to be proud of and we know is going to do justice to the issues raised.”
Along with signature gathering, both sides have also been gathering cash, according to data on the Maine Ethics Commission’s website.
The NO on 1/Protect Maine Equality group reported that as of July 5, the most recent reporting deadline, it had collected $143,290 from a mix of in- and out-of-state sources, both individual and corporate.
Among the most generous donors were Diane Sammer of Harpswell, $50,000; the Washington D.C.-based Human Rights Campaign, $25,000; the American Civil Liberties Union, $10,000; and Jane Begert of Falmouth, $10,000.
The campaign claimed another $59,000 in in-kind contributions, mostly staff time, from Equality Maine of Portland, $22,703; the Human Rights Campaign of Washington D.C., $15,782; Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders of Boston, Mass., $3392; the Maine Peoples Resource Center of Portland, $3000; the LGBT Mentoring Project of Los Angeles, Calif., $9125; the Maine People’s Alliance of Portland, $3175; and the Maine Civil Liberties Union of Portland, $1492.
The Stand for Marriage Maine Coalition, which opposes the same-sex marriage law, collected $343,689 as of July 5, the most recent reporting deadline. The largest donations came from the National Organization for Marriage of New Jersey, $160,000; the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland, $100,000; the Focus on the Family Maine Marriage Committee of Colorado, $31,000; and the Knights of Columbus of Washington D.C., $50,000.
The coalition reported spending approximately $194,000 for a professional firm, National Petition Management Inc., of Brighton, Mich., to gather signatures. Another $100,000 was spent on consultants and other operating costs.
In in-kind donations, the coalition benefited from the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland, $10,340; RealMaine of Yarmouth, $500; Focus on the Family Maine Marriage of Colorado, $2595; and the National Organization for Marriage of New Jersey, $9048.
The next reporting deadline for these two political action committees and all others in Maine is Oct. 13.
