Quote Of The Day - Jesse Connoly

"I think the messaging that we put forth was very strong, I think the consulting team that did our TV spots did a great job of executing the message we were running on. I think the bigger question is around the timing of the election, wondering why our supporters didn’t go vote. Those are more burning questions versus the coulda/woulda/shouldas on messaging. We were trying to boost turnout and put messages up there that encouraged people to go voted. But as we look through our data, there was a swath of voters who didn’t go vote and we need to try to understand why they didn’t." - Maine's No On 1 manager Jesse Connoly, speaking to the Advocate's Kerry Eleveld after co-moderating the marriage equality panel at Netroots Nation.

Connoly says that while equality issues may excite some of the voter base such as the LGBT community, the No On 1 side had to spend a lot of its resources just to get voters to the poll in a non-election year. That's an important lesson to consider in the future. There was also much introspection among the activists in the room as to why it took a straight man such as Connoly to put together what is universally considered the best marriage equality campaign we've seen so far.

WATCH: Maine's No On 1 Documentary

Both beautiful and heartbreaking. WATCH THIS.

Over $9M Spent On Maine's Question 1

The National Institute on Money in State Politics has sent us the above breakdown of the groups and amounts funding both sides of Maine's Question 1. The losing No On 1 side outspent the bigots by 68%, but to no avail.

Proponents

The committees that supported Question 1 got their funding almost entirely from churches and conservative Christian organizations and their employees, who gave $3 million, which is 89 percent of the proponents' total. Almost half of proponents' contributions came from the National Organization for Marriage, a conservative Christian group based in New Jersey, which gave $1.6 million. Focus on the Family gave $179,500. The Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland, another large donor, gave $285,988—all to its own ballot committee. In total, dioceses and churches provided $578,904. Out-of-state churches sent in $269,650. Out-of state donors from 45 other states gave $2.1 million to support the measure. New Jersey topped the list at $1.6 million. In a distant second place, Colorado donors gave $143,070, and those from the District of Columbia gave $75,275.

Opponents

The committees that opposed Question 1 relied less on the support of a few major organizations. Opponents of the measure raised money from over 10,000 donors—12 times more than proponents reported. Gay-rights groups and their employees gave $1.8 million, or 31 percent of the total raised by opponents. The Human Rights Campaign topped the list, giving $367,067. The Gill Foundation contributed $275,000. Freedom to Marry gave $200,000 and another $30,000 came from the Vermont affiliate. The National Gay & Lesbian Task Force gave $159,056, and EqualityMaine gave $152,151. Out-of-state donors contributed $3.3 million to oppose to the measure. Donations came from all 50 states; the top locations were New York ($761,498), Massachusetts ($653,889), and the District of Columbia ($619,566).

We still don't know where that $1.6M from NOM came from (an number that neatly matches the entire donation amount from their home state of New Jersey) because they have refused to comply with Maine's financial disclosure law.

Friendly Voices - Hendrik Gideonse

"During the campaign I made a practice of stopping at homes where Yes on 1 signs were posted and performed a small act of ‘bearing witness.’ I would ring the doorbell, excuse the interruption, and make the point that I wanted to see what a voter in contemporary America looked like who would publicly announce that they thought neither my son nor my god-daughter was equal to them in civil terms. The responses were as telling as the nastiness and smugness of so many of the comments posted here. Some people were simply stunned that I would perform such an act of conscience on their doorstep. Some cited Romans I to me. Others smiled their broad, born-again smiles seemingly treating me like a little child who didn’t know any better and could therefore be forgiven, or facilely informed me that God loved the sinner but not the sin.

"Given the work of the Catholic (oxymoron!) Church and all the other so-called christians in Maine and elsewhere who would seek to impose their personal religious views on members of my immediate family by denying them civil rights most of the rest of us enjoy, I take this first opportunity to renounce my Calvinist baptism. It won’t stop me from working to achieve the end of equality for all, but I can continue to do it without a designation that has, in recent years, become deeply objectionable to me because of the decidedly un-christian attitudes and acts of those similarly designated." - Hendrik Gideonse, in a comment left on the Bangor Daily News. Gideonse is the father of JMG reader and fellow blogger Ted Gideonse.

Friendly Voices - Jesse Connolly

"Tonight, hundreds of thousands of Maine voters stood for equality, but in the end, it wasn't enough. I am proud of the thousands of Mainers who knocked on doors, made phone calls and talked to their family, friends and neighbors about the basic premise of treating all Maine families equally. And I'm proud of this campaign because the stories we told and the images we shared were of real Mainers -- parents who stood up for their children, and couples who simply wanted to marry the person they love."

"We're in this for the long haul. For next week, and next month, and next year -- until all Maine families are treated equally. Because in the end, this has always been about love and family and that will always be something worth fighting for." - No On 1/Protect Maine Equality head Jesse Connolly, as reported by Rex Wockner.

As I said last night, Connolly and his team were simply outstanding, putting out the best equality campaign we've ever seen. They put actual LGBT people in their ads. They knocked on doors from one end of Maine to the other, engaging voters face to face. And their phonebanking effort ran around the clock until the very last minute. But in the end, it simply was no match for the outrageous and consistent lies and scare tactics of NOM, Stand For Marriage, and the Catholic Church. Unlike what we saw with Prop 8, this time we really cannot fault our side. We all owe Connolly and his team of volunteers our gratitude for a valiant effort.


(Photo by Rex Wockner)

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.

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.

Red Alert From Maine's No On 1

Maine's No On 1 team has issued the following alert seeking volunteers who can get up there tonight or tomorrow.

The "Drive for Equality" hotel in South Portland still has space available, and the staging locations still need volunteers. We're trying to entice Boston and NH people to make last-minute spur- of-the-moment decisions to come up here. So the word needs to get out on blogs very quickly this morning -- with the following talking points:

(A) We are providing FREE HOTEL ROOM SPACE for anyone from out-of- state who can make a spur-of-the-moment decision to drive up here, and volunteer. We have actually managed to recruit a few people at the last minute, and I know we can do more if the word gets out.
(B) The hotel is in South Portland. We have a block of rooms for tonight and tomorrow night, so people can stay until Wednesday.
(C) We're down by 4 points in the last poll -- this election is coming down to the last day-and-a-half. We could very well lose, simply because we don't have enough troops on the ground. New Hamsphire and Boston folks can easily get here -- and we will put them up if need be.
(D) People who sign up at the website will get a call back within 15 minutes.
(E) Our phone number -- someone will always answer it -- is 415-935-4552.

New Englanders - If ever there was a reason to take a mental health day...

You can also help with tomorrow's Election Day ad blitz.

Quote Of The Day - Maine Craigslister

From Craigslist's Maine Rants & Raves board:

Who the fuck do you radical faggot asswipes think you're intimidating with all this NO on one bullshit? Do you really think you will change the way we're going to vote with threats? Our Govenor is on your side? Good! Take that fucking sneaky aids-stricken weasel with you when we run your faggot asses out of Maine! We are the most heavily armed state in the country. Do you think we will run and hide from a bunch of fucking pansies? I am voting YES on one and so is everyone I talk to. So take your bully tactics somewhere else, they won't work here! We are going to keep you degenerates out of our schools and out of our state! Fucking faggots!

More gems here.

Nate Silver On Maine Vote

Statistics whiz kid Nate Silver is calling Maine's Yes On 1 a 5-2 underdog in tomorrow's vote.

The Odds: A statistical analysis I conducted last month, which was based on the results from previous gay marriage referenda in other states, gave the Yes on 1 side just an 11 percent chance of prevailing, although the fraction rises to 32 percent after an ad-hoc adjustment for the fact that this is an off-year election. In spite of the PPP poll, I'm not especially persuaded to deviate substantially from those numbers: the polling average still favors the 'No' side, albeit narrowly; the 'No' side seems to have run the superior campaign, and the cellphone issue may be worth a point or two. The tight polling, certainly, should keep everybody on their toes, and gay marriage could quite easily be overturned. But I'd still put the Yes on 1 side as about a 5-to-2 underdog.

Final No On 1 Ad

Cross your fingers kids, Tuesday will be a nail biter.

The Yes On 1 Song

The Children Of The Corn Singers perform a gospel-tinged (of course) song of support for bigotry in Maine. Nice harmony, terrible ending.

(Via - Good As You)

UPDATE: JMG reader Avery notes that the Yes, Lord, Yes song was actually popularized by an out gay gospel singer. Irony!

Maddow On Maine Marriage Battle

Last night Rachel Maddow hosted Maine Gov. John Baldacci to discuss his change of heart on same-sex marriage. The latest poll released yesterday shows the issue to still be a tie.

Anti-Gay Christians To Encircle Maine's Places Of Government

This Sunday in Maine, Pastor Bill Clarke is staging anti-gay prayer events around various places of government where Christianists will hold hands to "encircle all physical representations of the civil magistrate."

As you know, in Romans we are told that the civil magistrate is a minister of God and is to be a minister of justice and a terror to evildoers. We have allowed the election of leaders who have instead passed laws which fly in the face of God’s Law and supports evildoers. But this judgment is a judgment on his people. On this Lord’s day, we plan to claim God’s promise that if his people who are called by his name humble themselves and pray and seek his face he will heal their land. In many ways our land in the state of Maine is broken, sick and diseased. We will humbly seek God’s face, repent of our sins, and ask God to heal our land. Christians across the State are asked to come together and pray for the state of Maine. This is a statewide prayer meeting that will take place during the final hour of daylight on this Lord’s day, Sunday, November 1, 2009. We will pray from 3:31 PM to 4:31 PM.

Among the locations are the Bangor Civic Center and the State Capitol Building.

(Via - Good As You)

More Hysteria From Stand For Marriage

I've still never figured out what they mean by "teach gay marriage." I don't recall opposite marriage ever being taught to me.

New From Maine's No On 1

Protect Maine Equality has issued this last-minute push to get voters out to the polls.


Don't forget that YOU can help from anywhere in the nation by calling Maine voters from your home, office or cell phone.

It won't cost you anything. The software calls you. Your phone number won't be revealed. Caller ID will show the NO on 1 office number. "Call for Equality is critical to our plan to reach all the voters in Maine we need to reach," Roland told me in an interview. "We literally need to make hundreds of thousands of dials through that program -- and in order to do that, we know we need several hundred more people to sign up. You can sign up and get trained now, and start calling now, and then you'll be all set to call on election day."

"We're calling people who we believe support marriage equality," Roland said. "That is a no vote on Question 1. We are confirming that they support marriage equality -- and the vast majority of them do -- and we are urging them to vote early if they support marriage equality -- to vote no on 1 early. Voting early is the best thing that our supporters in Maine can do to help us right now because it lets us take them off our list for election day. We have to literally make over half a million calls in the last week of this campaign, but if you vote today, you just take one of those calls off of our list."

(Via - Rex Wockner)

Porno Pete LaBarbera Too Hateful Even For Maine's Anti-Gay Haters

Peter LaBarbera held a press conference yesterday in Maine's state house yesterday, which was not only virtually unattended except by the press, but was denounced by Stand For Marriage themselves.

Opponents of same-sex marriage on Wednesday warned that “radical homosexual” groups concealing their true agendas were behind efforts to keep Maine’s gay marriage law on the books. Those charges were denounced as “hate-filled speech” by the campaign defending gay marriage in Maine, however. And leaders from Stand for Marriage Maine, the organization behind the Nov. 3 ballot initiative to overturn Maine’s same-sex marriage law, quickly distanced themselves from the event. “We disavow anything said today as being in any way connected to the Stand for Marriage Maine campaign,” said spokesman Scott Fish. “Whatever was said today was simply the words of the people speaking at the press conference.”

Congratulations, Petey - you're the new Fred Phelps! Even your fellow Christianists won't be seen in the same room with you. In the brief clip below, LaBarbera call homosexuality "the elephant in the room."

Maine: NOM Loses, Must Disclose Funding

Good news from Maine:

A federal judge has turned down a request by the National Organization for Marriage to suspend Maine's campaign reporting requirements for ballot initiatives. But the judge's decision on Wednesday will have no immediate impact on the biggest contributor to the group that's trying to overturn Maine's gay marriage law. The ethics commission voted Oct. 1 to examine contributions by the National Organization for Marriage after it was accused of not reporting the names of many donors. But the commission's investigation won't be completed until long after Election Day.

NOM says they will continue their lawsuit and that Maine's disclosure requirement violates their First Amendment rights.

Maine Needs You!

Rex Wockner reports that Maine's No On 1 campaign desperately needs phone volunteers to help get out the vote to preserve marriage equality. You can do your part from your home or office on your cell phone or landline.

Basically, Karin [of Protect Maine Equality] needs you to get trained fast, then make lots of phone calls to Maine from wherever you are. It won't cost you anything. The software calls you. Your phone number won't be revealed. Caller ID will show the NO on 1 office number.

"Call for Equality is critical to our plan to reach all the voters in Maine we need to reach," Roland told me in an interview. "We literally need to make hundreds of thousands of dials through that program -- and in order to do that, we know we need several hundred more people to sign up. You can sign up and get trained now, and start calling now, and then you'll be all set to call on election day."

More information on how to help can be found on Wockner's blog. This is important. And not hard to do.