Maine repeals gay rights law
AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) - Voters
on Tuesday made Maine the first state
to repeal its gay rights law.
Unofficial returns from 588 of 663
precincts, or 89 percent, showed
131,372 or 52 percent voting for repeal
and 121,958 - 48 percent - voting to
retain the gay rights law.
State officials predicted a low
turnout for the single-issue election,
and both sides were counting on their
field organizations to deliver friendly
voters to the polls.
Maine lawmakers enacted a bill last
spring adding sexual orientation to the
protected classifications in Maine’s 25
year-old human rights act.
As signed by Gov. Angus King, the
measure would bar discrimination
against gays and lesbians in employ
ment, housing, public accommodations
and credit.
But a successful people’s veto drive,
as provided for in the state constitution,
blocked implementation of the new law.
Repeal advocates led by conserva
tive Christian groups collected more
than 58,000 signatures to put the issue
on state ballots.
The campaign leading up to
Tuesday’s vote was relatively low key,
with limited media advertising and only
scattered debates between representa
tives of the two sides.
January ice storms that disrupted
utility service in most of the state also
effectively muffled political activity for
weeks.
Just over two years ago, Maine vot
ers turned down a proposal by anti-gay
rights activists to freeze existing protec
tions in the state human rights act. The
proposal lost by 53 percent to 47 per
cent.
Independent opinion surveys in
recent months have found that close to a
two-thirds statewide majority now
favors gay rights in Maine.
The survey results, however, were
dismissed by repeal proponents in this
winter’s campaign. And defenders of
the gay rights measure urged their allies
not to be lulled into complacency by the
survey numbers.
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