Elections Board Votes Not to Put Gay Marriage Amendment on Ballot
Is john edwards a bigamist?
Posted on 08/11/2006 4:20:10 PM PDT by Dane
Gay marriage amendment lacks ballot vote
August 11, 2006
BY DEANNA BELLANDI ASSOCIATED PRESS
The state Board of Elections agreed Friday with a hearing officer that an advisory referendum on gay marriage doesn't have enough signatures to be on the November ballot.
But gay marriage opponents have taken their fight to federal court contending that the process to get a referendum on the Illinois ballot is burdensome and unconstitutional.
"Unless they pull a rabbit out of a hat in federal court, it's not going to be on the ballot," said Patricia Logue, senior counsel for the Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund.
Opponents of gay marriage want a nonbinding referendum on the ballot that would ask voters if the state should amend its constitution to ban same-sex marriage.
In Springfield at the State Fair, Gov. Rod Blagojevich said he was pleased that it looks as if the referendum won't be on the ballot because he is opposed to changing the state's constitution.
Supporters of the referendum submitted more than 330,000 signatures but a check of a sample of them fell short of the state's requirement. The requirement is that more than 95 percent of a sample's signatures be valid and gay marriage opponents had 91 percent.
Although the opponents lost their case at the federal district court level, they are hopeful the appellate court will intervene, said Peter LaBarbera, executive director of the conservative Illinois Family Institute.
"It's not near over," LaBarbera said.
A 1996 Illinois law already prohibits same-sex marriage, but opponents fear that courts could overturn the law unless the state constitution is changed. More than 40 states have taken steps to define marriage to ban same-sex marriage either through constitutional amendments or with statutes.
A June poll showed that a majority of Illinois voters said they oppose gay marriage but only 40 percent support asking state lawmakers for a constitutional amendment to ban it, according to the poll by the Chicago-based Glengariff Group. Fifty percent were opposed and 10 percent were undecided.
Both Blagojevich and his Republican challenger, state Treasurer Judy Baar Topinka, have said the 1996 state law makes a constitutional amendment unnecessary.
Amending the state constitution is a lengthy process. The most common approach would be for both chambers of the Legislature to vote by three-fifths majority to put an amendment on the ballot, where it would have to be approved by three-fifths of voters.
Elections Board Votes Not to Put Gay Marriage Amendment on Ballot
Is john edwards a bigamist?
I'm being transferred to Illinois soon. First the anti-gun stuff now this.
I can't wait to leave that state.
Why can't they just do what they need to do to get the amendment. Other states went through the procedures. Having it be too hard is not a very good excuse for something this important. Does Illinois ever have amendments? I mean if it is hard for these folks to collect a few signatures doesn't everyone have too for an amendment or proposition or whatever. Sounds like Illinois folks are just lazy as their GOP.
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