MAINE: Ethics Commission Extends Deadline For NOM To Disclose Donors

Via the Bangor Daily News:

The Maine Ethics Commission gave the National Organization for Marriage a reprieve Wednesday on disclosing the donor list from its 2009 campaign against same-sex marriage in Maine. But the five-person commission did not back down on its demand for the national organization to pay a $50,250 fine for violating the state’s campaign finance and disclosure laws.

Jonathan Wayne, the commission’s executive director, said Wednesday the commission unanimously approved a temporary delay on the disclosure of the national organization’s donors because the group has pledged to take its case to the Maine Superior Court, which would likely allow NOM to keep its donor list private while the case is active. The vote to uphold the fine was also unanimous.

Meanwhile, according to Wayne, NOM has filed complaints against two other national groups, the Human Rights Campaign and the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, which supported same-sex marriage in Maine in 2009, for either not registering as political action committees or not disclosing donors. Those complaints will be considered by the commission at its July 31 meeting.

(Tipped by JMG reader Seth)

MAINE: NOM Files Campaign Finance Complaints Against HRC And Task Force

Via the Portland Press Herald:

The National Organization for Marriage, the nation’s leading opponent of gay marriage, has filed two retaliatory complaints claiming that its adversaries violated Maine election laws more than four years ago. The complaints against the Human Rights Campaign and the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force stem from campaign activity in the 2009 referendum over Maine’s legislatively enacted gay-marriage law, which voters overturned. They are a direct response to a decision May 28 by Maine’s ethics commission to fine the organization a record $52,250 for failing to register as a ballot question committee and keeping its donors and activities secret during the 2009 campaign.  Fred Sainz, a spokesman for the Human Rights Campaign, said the anti-gay marriage group’s “nuisance complaint” further illustrates that it operated illegally while his organization followed disclosure laws. John Eastman, board chairman for the National Organization for Marriage, promised to file complaints against his opponents immediately after the five-member Commission on Governmental Ethics and Election Practices accepted findings from a staff investigation that the organization violated Maine law.

(Tipped by JMG reader Tom)

NOM Has The Money Laundering Sadz

"NOM vigorously denies that it violated any disclosure laws during the 2009 campaign opposing same-sex marriage. We worked with legal counsel to understand the law, and we followed that advice. The Commission staff has drawn improper inferences from the circumstances of the campaign environment that they wrongly interpret as meaning that if someone gave to NOM somehow they designated their gift to support the Maine campaign. However, we have submitted direct sworn statements from donors saying they had no such intention and any inference from the Commission staff to the contrary is false. We intend to appeal this decision in court because it is wrong as a matter of law and because the evidence supports our position, not that of the Commission staff.

"Moreover, we appear to be a victim of selective prosecution since major groups on the other side of this same campaign engaged in the same approach we did. In short, while we are disappointed in today's decision, we are not surprised by it and we will continue to resist the idea that somehow we failed to disclose donors to the Maine campaign. We disclosed our contributions to the Maine campaign committee, as Maine law requires. But we did not disclose our entire national donor list because those donors did not donate 'for the purpose of influencing' the Maine campaign, which is the trigger for reporting contributions that Maine law imposes." - Hate group leader Brian Brown, via press release.

RELATED: Earlier today an ethics committee ruled that NOM had violated Maine's campaign finance disclosure law and assessed the highest fine in state history.

MAINE: Ethics Committee Finds NOM Guilty, Eastman Says "We Won't Pay Fine"

UPDATE: The Portland Press Herald reports.

NOM executives, two of whom were present for the hearing, vowed to fight the ruling and protect the anonymity of the organization’s donors. John Eastman, the attorney and board chairman for NOM, said revealing the donors would put them at risk of threats and harassment while hindering the organization’s ability to raise money. Eastman said NOM would appeal Wednesday’s ruling. NOM’s resistance means that more time is likely to pass before the donors to the 2009 campaign are publicly identified. Chris Plante, NOM’s regional director, told the Portland Press Herald last week that the group will “do whatever it takes to defend this and protect our donors’ anonymity.”

Eastman says that NOM will file an ethics complaint against the HRC.

During occasionally heated exchanges, Eastman and Brown said NOM had been singled out by the commission. They argued that the Human Rights Campaign, a gay activist group, operated in the same manner during the 2009 referendum and the 2012 ballot initiative that legalized same-sex marriage in Maine. Eastman said NOM would file an ethics complaint against the Human Rights Campaign for its activities in the referendum battles. Fred Karger, a gay-rights activist from California, filed the complaint against NOM with the Maine ethics commission in 2009. Karger said NOM effectively laundered its donations to conceal the identity of its donors. “NOM definitely picked the wrong state to break the law,” Karger said. Karger said the ruling could assist an investigation that he filed in Iowa in 2013. He is also considering filing another complaint in New Hampshire, where NOM attempted to repeal that state’s same-sex marriage law.

NOM Has The Maine Sadz

"NOM strongly denies the findings of the staff report in Maine. We did not raise funds designated for the Maine campaign and fully complied with Maine law. The staff has ignored uncontested sworn evidence from donors that we did not designate any contributions for the referendum effort and instead has focused on circumstantial evidence to support its conclusion when a fair reading of those circumstances suggests the opposite. We look forward to presenting our case to the full Commission." - NOM chairman John Eastman, reacting to the Maine ethics investigators who have recommended that NOM be fined over $50K for "failing to register and disclose its activities in Maine’s 2009 same-sex marriage referendum."

Alex Chilton

Maine Moving Forward With NOM Campaign Ethics Investigation

Poor NOM. After being practically laughed out of the courthouse for requesting a last minute stay, they learned yesterday that Maine will proceed with an investigation into their violations of the state's campaign finance laws.

Barry Bostrom, an attorney for the group that contributed $1.9 million to a campaign to repeal the state's gay marriage law, told the commission that NOM feels its 1st Amendment rights are being violated by requests for information about donors. He said because the state law is being challenged in federal court, it would be better to hold off on the state-level ethics investigation until that is resolved. But with a 4-1 vote, most of the commission members disagreed. "I understand concerns about duplicate efforts, but that's part of the hand we are dealt," said ethics commision member Margaret Matheson. "We're charged with ensuring that voters have that information and that's the crux of this investigation."

NOM has refused to submit their financial reports for their successful campaign to repeal same-sex marriage in Maine, saying that the state has no need to know where they got their money.

Candidates Vie For Gay Vote In Atlanta's Mayoral Runoff Election

Atlanta, according to one survey, is the third-gayest city in the nation. That may be why both candidates in the city's mayoral runoff election are battling to win the LGBT vote.

"I cannot recall a mayor's race when there's been so much attention placed on the gay and lesbian vote," said Jeff Graham, executive director of Georgia Equality, the state's largest gay rights group. "All of a sudden, overnight, it's like an unbelievable push [to prove] who's gayer," added Glen Paul Freedman, chief of staff for City Council President Lisa Borders. Eleven days after the November vote, Norwood -- who would be the first white mayor of Atlanta since the 1970s -- was outside the state Capitol for a rally protesting Proposition 8, California's anti-gay-marriage measure. She told the crowd she had sent a donation to the forces fighting Prop. 8, and called herself "the only mayoral candidate who supports full marriage equality." A rainbow flag icon is now featured prominently on Norwood's campaign website; it links to a page reminding viewers that "each person in a couple" can contribute $1,200 to a candidate in the runoff.

Her rival, Reed -- a favorite of Atlanta's civil rights establishment who favors gay civil unions, not marriage -- has touted his pro-gay-rights record in the Legislature, where he sponsored a hate crimes bill that extended protections to gays. Reed, in a recent televised debate, attacked Norwood for missing a City Council vote on a measure to extend pension benefits to domestic partners of city employees. "I think it's great that they're paying attention to our issues," said Philip Rafshoon, founder and general manager of Outwrite Bookstore & Coffeehouse, in the heart of the heavily gay Midtown neighborhood. "And I think this community will hold their feet to the fire on those issues."

Gay turnout will likely be boosted by two openly gay candidates running for Atlanta's city council and for the state legislature.

Christian Right Launches Anti-Gay Campaign Against Annise Parker

Openly lesbian Houston mayoral candidate Annise Parker, who faces a runoff election next month, is the target of an anti-gay campaign by conservatives and Christians who say they fear a "gay takeover" at Houston City Hall.

A cluster of socially conservative Houstonians is planning a campaign to discourage voters from choosing City Controller Annise Parker in the December mayoral runoff because she is a lesbian, according to multiple ministers and conservatives involved in the effort. The group is motivated by concerns about a “gay takeover” of City Hall, given that two other candidates in the five remaining City Council races are also openly gay, as well as national interest driven by the possibility that Houston could become the first major U.S. city to elect an openly gay woman.

Another primary concern is that Parker or other elected officials would seek to overturn a 2001 city charter amendment that prohibits the city from providing benefits to the domestic partners of gay and lesbian employees. “The bottom line is that we didn't pick the battle, she did, when she made her agenda and sexual preference a central part of her campaign,” said Dave Welch, executive director of the Houston Area Pastor Council, numbering more than 200 senior pastors in the Greater Houston area. “National gay and lesbian activists see this as a historic opportunity. The reality is that's because they're promoting an agenda which we believe to be contrary to the concerns of the community and destructive to the family.” Welch said he had “no doubt” there would be numerous independent advocacy efforts urging voters not to choose Parker, most of which would involve mail.

Annise Parker's campaign and fundraising site is here.

Approve 71 Leading By 2 Points

Final results have not yet been certified, but things continue to look good, if very close, for the Approve R-71 side in Washington state. In fact, the other side has all but conceded. As tends to go with these things, the green, more urban counties above are where the support for domestic partnerships is in the majority. Don't exhale yet, though - there are still uncounted ballots in the mail.

Chapel Hill's New Gay Mayor

Among last night's good news, and there was a lot folks, really, was the election of Chapel Hill, North Carolina's openly gay mayor, Mark Kleinschmidt. Here's a great recounting of the final moments from Indy Week.

Supporters erupted. His mother burst into tears. His sister shouted. Mark Kleinschmidt just smiled contently, arms crossed but giving the kind of ear-to-ear grin you could feel across the room, satisfaction and disbelief merging together on his face. The campaign had just received word that rival Matt Czajkowski had made his concession speech at the Franklin Hotel.

The progressive bloc had won. They’d just escaped a new, moderate business-centered group gaining traction and council seats. Not so fast. Word came back that one precinct, Patterson, was yet to report. Kleinschmidt was up a scant 168 votes. The jubilation turned to shocked concern. It was too close to call. “I don’t want a ‘Dewey defeats Truman’ headline,” Kleinschmidt warned reporters at his R&R Grill party. The pack of local politicos returned to the laptop, clicking refresh again and again. Moments later, the candidate’s ever-buzzing cell phone went off once more. It was Mayor Kevin Foy calling to congratulate him. Kleinschmidt cautioned him, but thanked him for his support. Then the results flashed on the TV screens.

It was final — Kleinschmidt had won. “Oh, that’s it. We won it,” he said calmly to Foy. The crowd, already snakebitten, didn’t know what to do for a moment. Then it erupted again. “There’s a lot of people with cameras here, and I’m going to talk to them,” Kleinschmidt told his sudden predecessor. The swarm of reporters surged forward, someone handed the new mayor a microphone. With the other Triangle races not as contested, media came to Chapel Hill in search of a story. Lights flashed. Kleinschmidt’s back looked like a Christmas tree with microphones from four different TV stations hooked up to him, wires interwoven. “How does this affect my silhoutte,” he asked jokingly. “That’s the issue that the gay mayor is concerned about.”

Yes, Chapel Hill is a "liberal college town" - but we're still talking about North Carolina here. I'm proud of my birth state this morning.

Election Day Live Blog

Thanks to everybody who dropped in and who stayed with me for the past seven hours. Despite Maine, it was in general a fantastic night for LGBT politics, with great results seen in Kalamazoo, Chapel Hill, Detroit, Houston, and in Washington state, where Approve 71 continues to lead, with a final result possibly not coming for a few days. Let's focus on the wins, offer heartfelt thanks to Protect Maine Equality, and remain positive for the continuing fight to complete civil equality for all Americans.

1:06AM - New York Times declares Yes On 1 the winner. With 86% of votes in, bigots in Maine are ahead by 30,000 votes, a 5.4% margin. Regardless of this defeat, we owe a huge thank you to Jesse Connolly and his team at Protect Maine Equality, who by all accounts, ran the best marriage equality campaign we've seen.
12:55AM - Well, everybody is UNcalling a win on R-71, for now, thanks to confusion over the "official" WA elections site, which operates under its own rules. Things still look good, at least.
12:50AM - Democrat Bill Owens declared winner of NY-23. Rush Limbaugh, Sarah Palin, and Glenn Beck can SUCK IT.
12:37AM - Via Rex Wockner: No On 1 is not conceding, citing uncounted absentee ballots and unreporting precincts.
12:24AM - Commenters at Seattle's Slog are conflicted over the blue "winner" check mark at the official WA elections site - which is how EVERYBODY announces the winner on these things. Can somebody PLEASE advise??
11:50PM - Openly lesbian Houston comptroller Anise Parker takes first place in mayoral race, headed for runoff election.
11:45PM - Approve 71 bounces back to 3 point lead.
11:30PM - Yes On 1 widens lead to 11,000 votes, 3.2 points. Pours fourth fucking drink.
11:22PM - First report from Washington state shows Approve 71 losing by wide margin. That's only 6% of votes counted with several days of counting mailed ballots likely to follow.
11:16PM - Yes On 1 stretches lead to 2 points, 6000+ votes. 55% of districts reporting.
11:10PM - Yes On 1 now leading by 2200 votes, almost 1%. 49% of districts reporting.
11:03PM - Democrat Bill Owens leads by 4 pts in NY-23 House district. Suck it, Sarah Palin.
10:50PM - Exactly 50.0 - 50.0 in Maine. We lead by 32 votes. Pours third drink.
10:45PM - NY1 calls it for Bloomberg. $100M for a 3-pt margin. What's that come out to per vote?
10:32PM - Christine Quinn retains NYC council seat by 4-1 margin.
10:15PM - NBC News calls New Jersey for Chris Christie. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.
10:14PM - No On 1 reports via Twitter that their lead is now less than 1% with 22% of precints reporting.
10:06PM - New Jersey: 70% of votes counted, anti-gay GOP candidate Chris Christie leads by 5 points. Bad, bad news.
10:03PM - It's official, finally. Kalamazoo's new LGBT rights law is UPHELD. Wah and HOO!
10:00PM - MSNBC reports Bloomberg's win forecast "called back" as later results have narrowed his lead to less than 2%.
9:50PM - The New York Times election results site appears to be more stable than the other one. Going by that one for now. Presently shows us winning by 3.6 pts.
9:40PM - $100M will buy you several lovely Mediterranean islands or one illicit third term as NYC mayor.
9:27PM - D'oh! Bangor Daily News live results feed crashes. "Server taking too long to respond thanks to too many anxious homos!"
9:18PM - Hold that celebration, Michigan. Contradictory posts from Kalamazoo HQ.
9:11PM - Kalamazoomians represent! Unconfirmed results show new LGBT rights upheld 65-35. Woo! First win of the night! Probably.
9:02PM - Flippity flop, we back on top. By NINE. Pours second drink.
8:40PM - 7% of Maine votes counted. Huge jump for Yes On 1. We're now down by 9 pts. I don't think I can stand to look again for at least 30 minutes.
8:32PM - Listen to election results live on national LGBT radio, SiriusOutQ.
8:26PM - 2% of votes counted, No On 1 has 3-1 margin.
8:25PM - Live results from Kalamazoo, Michigan are being posted here.
8:10PM - UGH. It gets worse. Arch homophobe Ken Cuccinelli has just been called as Virginia's new Attorney General.
8:01PM - NBC News just called Virginia for the anti-gay Bob McDonnell. Ouch.
8:00PM - Veteran gay reporter Rex Wockner is live-posting from the No On 1 headquarters.
7:55PM - Follow No On 1 live on their Twitter account.
7:50PM - New Jersey's gubernatorial race election results will be posted live here. Things don't look promising for Democrat Jon Corzine.
7:45PM - The Bangor Daily News' live results tally has just gone live. Only 51 votes are on the board at this moment, marriage equality ahead 46-5. Enjoy that while it lasts.
7:40PM - Not yet received absentee ballots in Maine and ballots mailed today in Washington state may mean we don't get final results in either location tonight.
7:30PM - Weaselinas: Both of Maine's GOP Senators, Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins, refuse to say how they voted on marriage equality.

The polls have closed in Virgina and will close at 8pm in New Jersey and Maine, 9pm in New York. I'll be adding early results and exit polls to this post until the results are called. So far all they're saying is that it's too close to call in Virginia's governor race.

Good News: Voter Turnout In Maine Is Stronger Than Expected

Maine's polling places are busier than forecast today, lending hope to the No On 1 side, who are depending on a strong turnout to win. Maine's Secretary of State says that the turnout could exceed his prediction of 35% of eligible voters, provided midday volumes hold through the day. My gut is in knots.

Maryland: Gay GOP Candidate Smeared As Child Molester By Anonymous Campaign

Openly gay Annapolis city council candidate Scott Bowling, a Republican, is being smeared as a child molester by an anonymous group urging support for his Democratic opponent.

A flier circulated by an anonymous group called 'Friends and Supporters of Black Annapolis' attacked Scott Bowling, a Republican running for the Ward 3 City Council seat who is openly gay. It is unclear who is behind the attack — the document doesn't have an authority line as required by law for political literature. The typo-filled flier urges voters to support his opponent, incumbent Alderwoman Classie Hoyle, and the Democratic nominee for mayor, Josh Cohen. "Keep our Sister, Dr. Classie Gyllis [sic] Hoyle. Vote Tuesday for Dr. Classie Hoyle and Josh Cohen. Keep our African American Power. Keep us from Sin and Sexual Assault. Bowling will be danger [sic] to us all and our children," the flier reads, in part. Bowling condemned the flier as filled with 'hatred and bigotry' and illegal. He said he has called federal authorities and the state Attorney General's Office to investigate it as a hate crime and a violation of the Voting Rights Act, landmark legislation designed to curb discriminatory voting practices.

The Democratic candidate for Annapolis mayor has denounced the flier. Bowling's city council opponent, the incumbent, has not returned calls requesting comment.

A Note Of Thanks From Maine's No On 1

Yesterday's "red alert" from No On 1 yielded another $68K for last minute ads. Below, campaign head Jesse Connelly sends his appreciation.

HomoQuotable - David Mixner

"You have to be totally operating on blind faith if you believe that President Obama and his team cannot make a difference. Tragically if we lose closely, that defeat almost can be laid at the steps of the White House for their refusal to stand by our side in the battle for freedom. The Holder remark basically gave those Obama supporters and non-white voters permission to vote against our freedom. The Attorney General let them know that Obama didn't care one way or another so why should those voters change their votes? He gave their votes respectability which was devastating for our side.

"The failure of our national organizations to obtain a clear cut endorsement for the LGBT community is something that needs to be discussed. This one isn't rocket science. What happened?

"We certainly know by the president's repeated visits to Virginia, New York and New Jersey that he at least had time to issue a tough statement against this form of ballot box bigotry. What they did and failed to do these past weeks, whether we win or lose tonight, is just tragic, sad and unconscionable." - Activist and National Equality March co-founder David Mixner, saying that President Obama will be partially to blame for any losses in today's anti-gay ballot measures.

Election Day Open Thread

I'll be live-blogging election results this evening. In the meantime use this space to talk about your experiences at the polls today. Mainers, New Yorkers, Washington state residents - we want to hear from you in particular. Kalamazoomians (?) too! Drop in any links to exit polls, please.

UPDATE: I left off Houston, where open lesbian Anise Parker is running for mayor.

NJ Gov Race: Chris Christie Goes For Last Minute Anti-Gay Push

The Bilerico Project reports that GOP New Jersey gubernatorial candidate Chris Christie, who is in a tight race with incumbent Jon Corzine, has sent voters a last-minute anti-gay mailer in order to push him over the top with the state's bigots. Adam Bink:

Not only does stuff like this make me furious, but there's another wrinkle to this race. We have just enough votes in the state legislature to pass marriage equality. But if Christie is elected governor, we may kiss our chances goodbye for another four years. So, I want to ask for your help. This weekend will be fun with Halloween and parties. But the day after Election Day, it won't be much fun for LGBT couples in New Jersey if Christie gets elected governor (it won't be much fun for anyone but his cronies, really). The campaign has set up a virtual phonebanking tool- all you need is a phone, an internet connection, and few hours. No experience necessary. Click here to get started. If you're in NJ, you can find your local field office by clicking here, or calling the hotline at 877-NJ-GOV-09. New Jersey could be the next state on the map. But it could either happen next month, or we could find ourselves left behind for four- or more- years. Please help out by calling or helping out in person.

PhoboQuotable - Ken Cuccinelli

"Homosexual acts are intrinsically wrong. And I think in a natural law-based country it's appropriate to have policies that reflect that. They don't comport with natural law. I happen to think that it represents (to put it politely; I need my thesaurus to be polite) behavior that is not healthy to an individual and in aggregate is not healthy to society." - Virginia GOP state Senator and Attorney General candidate Ken Cuccinelli, who was called out as a bigot today in a strongly-worded editorial by the Washington Post.

Putting aside what Mr. Cuccinelli has to say about homosexuals when he's not trying so hard to be polite, let's call his comments what they are: bigotry. Bigotry is as pernicious today, applied to homosexuals, as it was a century ago or less, when immigrants and minorities were its main victims. And it is just as familiar. Appeals to "natural law" and "intrinsic" rights and wrongs were the usual cliches deployed to justify the old-time religion of hatred then directed at African Americans, Jews, Italians, Irish and other immigrants.

It is especially alarming that this ugly nonsense is coming from Mr. Cuccinelli, who, if he becomes the attorney general of Virginia -- a job that combines aspects of chief government lawyer and top cop -- would be in a position to act on it. He says he would not ask job applicants to the 166-lawyer office about their sexuality, and his spokesman says openly gay employees would not be "rooted out" and fired. But, since he would be empowered to issue opinions on such questions, how would he regard such firings generally in state government, in which a 110,000-strong workforce undoubtedly includes thousands of homosexuals?

Christine Quinn Endorses Bill Thompson For NYC Mayor

In a bit of a shocker, openly gay New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn, long seen as Michael Bloomberg's right-hand gal, has endorsed Comptroller Bill Thompson for mayor.

City Council Speaker Christine Quinn off-handedly endorsed city Controller William Thompson for mayor on Monday, despite being a longstanding ally of Mayor Bloomberg. By doing so, Quinn (D-Manhattan) bowed to the demands of Council Democrats, who said she needed to back their candidate if she wants to be reelected speaker next year. "I believe Bill Thompson has been a good controller, I think he would be a good mayor, and I think it's very important that the Democrats are united," Quinn told reporters after an unrelated event. Thompson said he was happy with the endorsement and was working out details with her staff for a joint appearance.

Didn't see that coming.