Just three years after voters in an off-year election vetoed a marriage equality law passed by elected officials, Maine voters today reversed course and their state joined fellow New England states Massachusetts, Connnecticut, Vermont and New Hampshire in recognizing full marriage equality.
Maine voters rejected the cynical politics of anti-LGBT activists, thanks in large part to Maine's media providing several thourough debunkings of the false claims made by the anti-gay side in campaign ads. Maine voters went into the polls today knowing that the scare tactics utilized by those fighting against marriage equality were nothing more than that.
According to the Mainers United / Yes on One facebook page:
VICTORY: Maine voters approve the freedom to marry! For the first time in history, a state has won marriage at the ballot box and we’ve done it right here in Maine. THANK YOU, MAINE!
Those leading the charge against marriage equality revealed their true feelings about gay people today in a posting (later removed) on their website that claimed that gay people's relationships are "centered around anonymous sexual encounters" and that among gay people, "long term relationships are very rare."
Thankfully, Maine voters today stood up for their friends, neighbors, family members and co-workers who do - or might someday - want to marry their same-sex partner.
"Voters in Maine have shown that full equality for gay and lesbian people is no longer a partisan issue but an issue of human dignity," said GLAAD President Herndon Graddick. "The claims made by anti-gay activists that voters would never embrace marriage for gay and lesbian couples could not be further from the truth. Across lines of politics, race, religion and gender, Mainers today demonstrated that marriage equality is the becoming a real part of American history."
We thank everyone in Maine and across the country who, today, voted for equality. We hope Maine will soon be joined by several more states in the history book tonight.
For more voting information, go to www.glaad.org/vote.
