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Ref. 71 filed to repeal WA domestic partnerships |
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| Ref. 71 filed to repeal WA domestic partnerships | ||
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by Mike Andrew -
SGN Staff Writer As expected, Washington Values Alliance President Larry Stickney has filed a referendum seeking to overturn SB 5688, the state's new domestic partnership expansion law. Stickney filed his referendum with the state Secretary of State's office on Monday, May 4. The measure has been assigned number 71. Stickney was joined in Olympia by Oregon-based televangelist Gary Randall. Randall runs a trio of right-wing organizations - the Faith and Freedom Foundation, Faith and Freedom Network, and Faith and Freedom PAC. Other right-wing evangelical leaders immediately distanced themselves from their efforts, however, leaving the future of the referendum in doubt. Stickney's group must now gather 120,500 signatures by July 25 in order to qualify Referendum 71 for the November ballot. Referendum supporters may not begin to gather signatures until Gov. Gregoire actually signs the domestic partnership bill into law, however, and she has until May 19 to do so. The governor is expected to sign the bill, but according to her office no date has yet been set. REFERENDUM WOULD REMOVE RIGHTS In a May 2 media release featuring quotes from Martin Luther and ultra-right Senator Sam Brownback (R-KS), Stickney outlined the strategy behind the referendum. "A Referendum to roll back SB 5688 (which grants full spousal rights for homosexual couples in everything but the name) will keep the law from going into effect and put the measure in front of the voters in November," Stickney wrote. "If we wait, the new law goes into effect in June and the Defense of Marriage Act will be challenged in the courts and likely overturned this same time next year. We have no time to waste, we have no other recourse, they are inside the wire." "Faith and Freedom Network has up-to-date polling data by Elway that asked one simple question: 'In your opinion, should homosexuals be allowed to legally marry?'" Stickney continued. "A majority said NO. Conclusion: This is a winnable issue for our side and not a fight we should run from [emphasis in the original]." The Elway poll Stickney cites was commissioned by Randall's Faith and Freedom Network. The poll, conducted on April 13 and 14 this year, shows 50% of the respondents opposing marriage equality and 43% supporting it, with 7% answering "don't know," and a margin of error of 5%. The poll asked only about marriage, and did not survey public support for domestic partnership rights. Before becoming president of WAVA, Stickney was executive director of the Family Policy Institute of Washington - the local affiliate of James Dobson's Focus on the Family. One of FPIW's directors has publicly opposed the referendum, however. Pastor Joe Fuiten of Cedar Park Church in Bothell reportedly e-mailed his congregation, saying, "My belief is that it would be a mistake to run a referendum," in part because he believes the referendum will lose. Fuiten conducted his own e-mail poll of prominent pastors, right-wing organizers and fundraisers, and Republican Party leaders. According to his blog, only six responded definitely in support of a referendum, and three more offered conditional support. Over 25 opposed running a referendum at this time. Among those opposing a referendum campaign, Fuiten cited Larry Sundquist, who he described as "the largest funder of our Referendum efforts in 2006." Others opposing the referendum included Maureen Richardson, state director of Concerned Women for America; Jerry Beebe, executive Presbyter of the Assemblies of God denomination; Dan Kennedy, director of Human Life of Washington; and Judy Jennings, director of the Washington Federation of Independent Schools. Right-wing forces including Randall, Fuiten, anti-Gay pastor Ken Hutcherson, and initiative maven Tim Eyman sponsored a 2006 referendum aimed at repealing the Anderson-Murray Civil Rights Bill, but failed to gather enough signatures to qualify for the ballot. PASTOR DOES NOT FEEL GOD SUPPORTS REFERENDUM The 2006 failure was clearly on Fuiten's mind as he weighed the prospects of a new ballot effort. Like most of those he polled, he believes that the ballot measure will probably lose. "My belief is that it would be a mistake to run a referendum," Fuiten wrote on his blog. "I know that some will say that I just lack faith. It might be. I don't have any interest in being another General Custer. I also know that when Israel decided to enter the Promised Land without God's blessing they were soundly defeated. If I felt that God was telling us to go ahead, I would do it in a heartbeat. I don't feel the Lord has said not to, but I cannot get any peace about making this effort [emphasis in the original]." Stickney, meanwhile, posted a list of his own supporters on the WAVA website. They include Bruce Craswell, husband of the late Republican gubernatorial candidate Ellen Craswell; Ken Hutcherson; the Christian Coalition's Rick Forcier; and four Republican legislators, Sen. Dan Swecker, Sen. Val Stevens, Rep. Matt Shea, and Rep. Jim McCune. In a media release posted on the Faith and Freedom PAC website, Randall proclaims, "If you are on the side of marriage, this is our time. People of faith and conservatives must carry this referendum drive. There is no one else. Let The Church Rise." Randall also accuses the Secretary of State's office of trying to undermine the referendum effort by leaking information to the media in advance of his group's press release. Randall's Faith and Freedom PAC has reported contributions to date of $95.51. All campaign contributions and expenditures must be reported to the state's Public Disclosure Commission. WAVA has not filed a report with the PDC. OVER 5,300 DOMESTIC PARTNERSHIPS SO FAR To date, over 5,300 domestic partnerships have been registered with the state Secretary of State's office. Domestic partnerships were first recognized by the state in July 2007. While state law prohibits same-sex marriage, the new domestic partnership legislation passed this year affords same-sex couples all the rights and responsibilities of married spouses. Since a referendum challenging it has been filed, the new law will not go into effect until it has been ratified by voters, or until Referendum 71 fails to qualify for the November ballot. The Washington state legislature passed the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), limiting marriage to opposite-sex couples, over Gov. Gary Locke's veto in 1998. In a controversial 5-4 decision the state Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of DOMA in 2006. Legislation recognizing domestic partnerships first passed in 2007, affording a limited number of rights to same-sex couples. This year's domestic partnership bill expanded those rights to full equality with opposite-sex married couples. Five states have legalized same-sex marriage: Connecticut, Massachusetts, Iowa, Vermont, and Maine. New Hampshire, and New York have marriage equality legislation pending. Same-sex marriage was also legal in California until Proposition 8 passed last fall. New York and the District of Columbia recognize same-sex marriages concluded in other jurisdictions. New Hampshire, New York, New Jersey, California, Oregon, Washington, Hawaii and the District of Columbia have laws that recognize civil unions or domestic partnerships affording same-sex couples some or all of the rights of marriage. Thirty states have Gay marriage bans in their constitutions. |
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