Washington Referendum 71 (2009)
Encyclopedia
Referendum 71 was a vote held in 2009 in which the people of Washington state confirmed Senate Bill 5688, a law extending the rights and obligations of domestic partnership in Washington
. The Bill was approved 53% to 47%; this marked the first time in the United States that voters had approved a state-wide ballot measure that extended LGBT relationship rights, although Arizona voters had previously rejected a ban on same-sex marriages and civil unions in 2006 (only to pass civil-unions-neutral Proposition 102
two years later). The law went into effect the day the election was certified, December 3, 2009.
on May 18, 2009. On July 25, 2009, the organization Protect Marriage Washington turned in 137,881 signatures to the Washington Secretary of State's office. 120,577 valid signatures were required to qualify the referendum
for the November 2009 ballot. After a complete count of all submitted signatures, 121,757 were officially verified on September 1, 2009.
Under the Constitution of the State of Washington, laws passed by the legislature do not take effect until ninety days after the close of the legislative session, unless the state legislature declares an "emergency" requiring the law to take effect immediately. During this ninety day period citizens can attempt to force a referendum by gathering the required number of signatures. Under the constitution, that number is equal to four percent of the number of voters in the previous gubernatorial election. If enough signatures are gathered and presented to the Secretary of State before the ninety days have elapsed, then the law is placed on hold, and does not take effect unless it is approved by referendum held at the same time as the next election.
Enactment of the Olympia
-approved law was initially halted pending signature-verification; having received sufficient valid signatures to require voter re-confirmation, the state extended the hold until the results of the 2009 general election are made official.
Washington state law mandates that when a measure already signed into law is put up for a referendum, voters vote either "approved" to confirm the law or "rejected" to oppose it. Thus, although the petition to put this law to a vote was circulated by its opponents, the ballot wording is such that voters vote in the affirmative to approve the law or in the negative to reject it.
Several lawsuits were filed to block R-71 from appearing on the ballot, but none was successful in court.
A second challenge to the Ballot certification brought in Thurston County by Arthur West was dismissed upon the Secretary of State's misrepresentation of the scope of the federal injunction. A third challenge brought by WFST was dismissed by agreement without review of the signature sheets There was an active lawsuit to be heard by the Supreme Court to decide if and when signatories to ballot measures are to be revealed publicly. Following the dissolution of the injunction on 11-17-11 the Secretary of State first released some copies of the R-71 signatures, but then halted such releases pending a motion for a further injunction to be heard on 11-24-11 in the 9th Circuit.
Since October 23, 2011 a substantial portion of the R-71 signatures have been posted
online at
http://www.scribd.com/HaxoAnglemark
. Its overall purpose is stated in Section 1:
Statement of Subject: The legislature passed Engrossed Second Substitute Senate Bill 5688 concerning rights and responsibilities of state-registered domestic partners [and voters have filed a sufficient referendum petition on this bill].
Concise Description: This bill would expand the rights, responsibilities, and obligations accorded state-registered same-sex and senior domestic partners to be equivalent to those of married spouses, except that a domestic partnership is not a marriage.
Should this bill be:
Approved ___
Rejected ___
Ballot Measure Summary
Same-sex couples, or any couple that includes one person age sixty-two or older, may register as a domestic partnership with the state. Registered domestic partnerships are not marriages, and marriage is prohibited except between one man and one woman. This bill would expand the rights, responsibilities, and obligations of registered domestic partners and their families to include all rights, responsibilities, and obligations granted by or imposed by state law on married couples and their families.
and Washington Families Standing Together
, led the 'Decline to Sign' campaign, urging voters not to sign the petitions to put the referendum on the November 2009 ballot.
Governor Gregoire stated:
Protect Marriage Washington argued, however, that the "consent of the governed" as per the Declaration of Independence
has been withheld from same sex marriage in every state where the issue has been put to a vote of the people. It has been noted that Referendum 71 is about Domestic Partnerships and does not grant marriage equality to same sex couples.
poll found 73% of Washington voters support some legal recognition of same-sex relationships (civil union/domestic partnership or marriage). The same group in October 2009 conducted a poll (N = 754 registered voters) and found that 56% of respondents planned to vote 'approve', and 39% planned to vote 'reject.'
A 2009 Elway Poll
commissioned by the Faith and Freedom Network, an organization opposed to gay marriage, asked "Should homosexuals be allowed to legally marry?" The Elway Poll (N = 405 registered voters) reported 43% saying yes and 50% saying no.
A September 2009 poll (N = 569 likely voters) commissioned by the Approve 71 campaign and conducted by Greenberg Quinlan Rosner (GQR) found that, when presented with the actual Referendum's language, 51% of likely voters chose to approve and 44% to reject the legislation. A later GQR poll (N = 500 likely voters) released on 26 October 2009 found that the 53% approved the legislation, while 36% rejected it.
An October 2009 poll by Survey USA, funded by KING-TV
in Seattle showed that 50% of the 561 likely voters polled would vote for the measure while 43% would reject it, 7% unsure.
Newspapers:
Some individuals and a group called WhoSigned.org requested these signatures for the Referendum 71 ballot application. Protect Marriage Washington filed to block the release of these signatures, arguing that, "due to the highly charged nature of the topic of Referendum 71, (domestic partnerships, gay rights, the traditional definition of marriage, etc.) that the personal information on the petitions for Referendum 71 warrant particular protection." The issue escalated to the U.S. Supreme Court
where on October 19, 2009 Justice Kennedy
issued a temporary block to the release of the names and then the following day the Court voted 8-1 (with Clarence Thomas
being the lone dissenter) to withhold the signatures until the issue could receive a full hearing.
The Supreme Court heard full arguments in the case, Doe v. Reed
, on April 28, 2010. The Supreme Court decision would likely set a precedent for public disclosure rules for all referendum and initiative petitions within all states which use those citizen procedures.
On June 24, 2010, the US Supreme Court rejected Protect Marriage Washington's claims in an 8-1 decision, with only Thomas dissenting. The court upheld the constitutionality of the Public Records Act under which the petition was requested. The question of whether to block release of the petition on narrower grounds was decided before the district court. Washington State's Office on Monday began making public the names of 137,500 people who signed Referendum 71 petitions two years ago to bring a domestic-partnership law to a public vote.
On October 23, one of the first installments of the R-71 petition
signature sheets was posted on the internet at
http://www.scribd.com/fullscreen/70033853?access_key=key-3t2tzmhrz6o74dakt2a
made light of one advertisement created by Protect Marriage Washington on The Colbert Report's October 26, 2009, show. The ad asserts that in May 2004, gay marriage was legalized in Scandinavia
and coincided with a suicide rate doubling and an illegal drug use increasing nineteen-fold. Colbert went on to say the ad was "terrifying," adding, "and that ad is no less terrifying just because there is no country called Scandinavia, none of the countries in Scandinavia passed gay marriage laws in 2004, and the statistics on suicide and drug use are made up."
Domestic partnership in Washington
State Registered Domestic Partnerships in Washington were created in the aftermath of the Andersen v. King County decision. Subsequent legislation has made a SRDP the equivalent of marriage under state law.-Beginnings:...
. The Bill was approved 53% to 47%; this marked the first time in the United States that voters had approved a state-wide ballot measure that extended LGBT relationship rights, although Arizona voters had previously rejected a ban on same-sex marriages and civil unions in 2006 (only to pass civil-unions-neutral Proposition 102
Arizona Proposition 102 (2008)
Arizona Proposition 102 was an amendment to the constitution of the state of Arizona adopted by a referendum held in 2008. It added Article 30 of the Arizona Constitution, which says:"Only a union of one man and one woman shall be valid or recognized as a marriage in this state."- Overview :On...
two years later). The law went into effect the day the election was certified, December 3, 2009.
History
Senate Bill 5688 was signed by Governor Christine GregoireChristine Gregoire
Christine O'Grady "Chris" Gregoire is the 22nd and current Governor of the state of Washington, and a member of the Democratic Party. Gregoire defeated Republican candidate Dino Rossi in 2004, and again in 2008. She is the second female governor of Washington...
on May 18, 2009. On July 25, 2009, the organization Protect Marriage Washington turned in 137,881 signatures to the Washington Secretary of State's office. 120,577 valid signatures were required to qualify the referendum
Referendum
A referendum is a direct vote in which an entire electorate is asked to either accept or reject a particular proposal. This may result in the adoption of a new constitution, a constitutional amendment, a law, the recall of an elected official or simply a specific government policy. It is a form of...
for the November 2009 ballot. After a complete count of all submitted signatures, 121,757 were officially verified on September 1, 2009.
Under the Constitution of the State of Washington, laws passed by the legislature do not take effect until ninety days after the close of the legislative session, unless the state legislature declares an "emergency" requiring the law to take effect immediately. During this ninety day period citizens can attempt to force a referendum by gathering the required number of signatures. Under the constitution, that number is equal to four percent of the number of voters in the previous gubernatorial election. If enough signatures are gathered and presented to the Secretary of State before the ninety days have elapsed, then the law is placed on hold, and does not take effect unless it is approved by referendum held at the same time as the next election.
Enactment of the Olympia
Olympia, Washington
Olympia is the capital city of the U.S. state of Washington and the county seat of Thurston County. It was incorporated on January 28, 1859. The population was 46,478 at the 2010 census...
-approved law was initially halted pending signature-verification; having received sufficient valid signatures to require voter re-confirmation, the state extended the hold until the results of the 2009 general election are made official.
Washington state law mandates that when a measure already signed into law is put up for a referendum, voters vote either "approved" to confirm the law or "rejected" to oppose it. Thus, although the petition to put this law to a vote was circulated by its opponents, the ballot wording is such that voters vote in the affirmative to approve the law or in the negative to reject it.
Several lawsuits were filed to block R-71 from appearing on the ballot, but none was successful in court.
A second challenge to the Ballot certification brought in Thurston County by Arthur West was dismissed upon the Secretary of State's misrepresentation of the scope of the federal injunction. A third challenge brought by WFST was dismissed by agreement without review of the signature sheets There was an active lawsuit to be heard by the Supreme Court to decide if and when signatories to ballot measures are to be revealed publicly. Following the dissolution of the injunction on 11-17-11 the Secretary of State first released some copies of the R-71 signatures, but then halted such releases pending a motion for a further injunction to be heard on 11-24-11 in the 9th Circuit.
Since October 23, 2011 a substantial portion of the R-71 signatures have been posted
online at
http://www.scribd.com/HaxoAnglemark
Provisions of the law
The full title of the proposal approved in the referendum was Engrossed Second Substitute Senate Bill 5688. It was intended to make domestic partnership in Washington state equivalent to marriage, without being called by that name. For this reason it is sometimes referred to as the "everything but marriage bill". The law made many changes to the Revised CodeRevised Code of Washington
The Revised Code of Washington is the compilation of all permanent laws currently in force in the U.S. state of Washington. Temporary laws such as appropriations acts are excluded....
. Its overall purpose is stated in Section 1:
Text of referendum
Ballot TitleStatement of Subject: The legislature passed Engrossed Second Substitute Senate Bill 5688 concerning rights and responsibilities of state-registered domestic partners [and voters have filed a sufficient referendum petition on this bill].
Concise Description: This bill would expand the rights, responsibilities, and obligations accorded state-registered same-sex and senior domestic partners to be equivalent to those of married spouses, except that a domestic partnership is not a marriage.
Should this bill be:
Approved ___
Rejected ___
Ballot Measure Summary
Same-sex couples, or any couple that includes one person age sixty-two or older, may register as a domestic partnership with the state. Registered domestic partnerships are not marriages, and marriage is prohibited except between one man and one woman. This bill would expand the rights, responsibilities, and obligations of registered domestic partners and their families to include all rights, responsibilities, and obligations granted by or imposed by state law on married couples and their families.
Background
The proposal to overturn the bill was filed by Larry Stickney, president of the Washington Values Alliance, a group that opposes recognition of same-sex relationships. Organizations favoring the original legislation and opposing putting the issue up for referendum, such as Equal Rights WashingtonEqual Rights Washington
Equal Rights Washington is Washington’s largest state-wide LGBT advocacy and community outreach organization. ERW's mission is to ensure and promote dignity, safety, and equality for all lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender Washingtonians....
and Washington Families Standing Together
Washington Families Standing Together
Washington Families Standing Together was founded in 2009 to preserve domestic partnerships in Washington State by urging voters to approve Referendum 71....
, led the 'Decline to Sign' campaign, urging voters not to sign the petitions to put the referendum on the November 2009 ballot.
Reaction to petition
Ed Murray, who sponsored the initial domestic partnership legislation in 2007 (Senate Bill 5336), stated:Governor Gregoire stated:
Protect Marriage Washington argued, however, that the "consent of the governed" as per the Declaration of Independence
United States Declaration of Independence
The Declaration of Independence was a statement adopted by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, which announced that the thirteen American colonies then at war with Great Britain regarded themselves as independent states, and no longer a part of the British Empire. John Adams put forth a...
has been withheld from same sex marriage in every state where the issue has been put to a vote of the people. It has been noted that Referendum 71 is about Domestic Partnerships and does not grant marriage equality to same sex couples.
Polls
A 2007 University of WashingtonUniversity of Washington
University of Washington is a public research university, founded in 1861 in Seattle, Washington, United States. The UW is the largest university in the Northwest and the oldest public university on the West Coast. The university has three campuses, with its largest campus in the University...
poll found 73% of Washington voters support some legal recognition of same-sex relationships (civil union/domestic partnership or marriage). The same group in October 2009 conducted a poll (N = 754 registered voters) and found that 56% of respondents planned to vote 'approve', and 39% planned to vote 'reject.'
A 2009 Elway Poll
Elway Research
Elway Research, Inc.is a Seattle-based public opinion research firm. Since 1975, Elway Research has research projects for major corporations, media outlets, associations, foundations, campaigns and governmental agencies at all levels....
commissioned by the Faith and Freedom Network, an organization opposed to gay marriage, asked "Should homosexuals be allowed to legally marry?" The Elway Poll (N = 405 registered voters) reported 43% saying yes and 50% saying no.
A September 2009 poll (N = 569 likely voters) commissioned by the Approve 71 campaign and conducted by Greenberg Quinlan Rosner (GQR) found that, when presented with the actual Referendum's language, 51% of likely voters chose to approve and 44% to reject the legislation. A later GQR poll (N = 500 likely voters) released on 26 October 2009 found that the 53% approved the legislation, while 36% rejected it.
An October 2009 poll by Survey USA, funded by KING-TV
KING-TV
KING-TV, virtual channel 5, is a television station in Seattle, Washington, affiliated with the NBC network. Owned by Belo Corporation, it broadcasts on UHF digital channel 48. Its offices and broadcasting center are located just east of Seattle Center...
in Seattle showed that 50% of the 561 likely voters polled would vote for the measure while 43% would reject it, 7% unsure.
Election results
Endorsing a vote of "approve"
- Governor Christine GregoireChristine GregoireChristine O'Grady "Chris" Gregoire is the 22nd and current Governor of the state of Washington, and a member of the Democratic Party. Gregoire defeated Republican candidate Dino Rossi in 2004, and again in 2008. She is the second female governor of Washington...
- U.S. Senators Patty MurrayPatty MurrayPatricia Lynn "Patty" Murray is the senior United States Senator from Washington and a member of the Democratic Party. Murray was first elected to the Senate in 1992, becoming Washington's first female senator...
and Maria CantwellMaria CantwellMaria E. Cantwell is the junior United States Senator from the state of Washington and a member of the Democratic Party.... - U.S. Representatives Jay InsleeJay InsleeJay Robert Inslee is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1999. He is a member of the Democratic Party. The district includes many of Seattle's northern suburbs in King, Snohomish, and Kitsap counties...
, Rick LarsenRick LarsenRichard Ray "Rick" Larsen is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 2001. He is a member of the Democratic Party.-Early life, education and career:...
, and Jim McDermottJim McDermottJames Adelbert "Jim" McDermott is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1989. He is a member of the Democratic Party. The 7th District includes most of Seattle and Vashon Island, and portions of Shoreline, Lake Forest Park, Tukwila, SeaTac, and Burien.He serves on the House Ways and Means... - 17 of 49 state senators
- 46 of 98 state representatives
- MicrosoftMicrosoftMicrosoft Corporation is an American public multinational corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services predominantly related to computing through its various product divisions...
- BoeingBoeingThe Boeing Company is an American multinational aerospace and defense corporation, founded in 1916 by William E. Boeing in Seattle, Washington. Boeing has expanded over the years, merging with McDonnell Douglas in 1997. Boeing Corporate headquarters has been in Chicago, Illinois since 2001...
- GoogleGoogleGoogle Inc. is an American multinational public corporation invested in Internet search, cloud computing, and advertising technologies. Google hosts and develops a number of Internet-based services and products, and generates profit primarily from advertising through its AdWords program...
- Nike, Inc.Nike, Inc.Nike, Inc. is a major publicly traded sportswear and equipment supplier based in the United States. The company is headquartered near Beaverton, Oregon, which is part of the Portland metropolitan area...
- Puget Sound EnergyPuget Sound EnergyPuget Sound Energy is Washington state's oldest local energy utility providing electrical power and natural gas in the Puget Sound region of the northwest United States...
- RealNetworksRealNetworksRealNetworks, Inc. is a provider of Internet media delivery software and services based in Downtown Seattle, Washington, United States. The company is the creator of RealAudio, a compressed audio format; RealVideo, a compressed video format; RealPlayer, a media player; RealDownloader, a download...
- Vulcan Inc.Vulcan Inc.Vulcan Inc. is an investment and project management company founded in 1986 by Paul Allen, co-founder of Microsoft, to manage his investments...
- Washington State Democrats
- Washington Association of Churches
- League of Women VotersLeague of Women VotersThe League of Women Voters is an American political organization founded in 1920 by Carrie Chapman Catt during the last meeting of the National American Woman Suffrage Association approximately six months before the Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution gave women the right to vote...
of Washington - Mainstream Republicans of Washington
- Washington State Council of Firefighters
- Washington State Nurses AssociationWashington State Nurses AssociationFor the Memphis, Tennessee radio station previously carrying the calls WSNA, please see WKQK.Founded in 1908, the Washington State Nurses Association is the professional organization representing more than 13,000 registered nurses in the U.S. state of Washington...
- Children's Alliance
- Washington State Bar AssociationWashington State Bar AssociationThe Washington State Bar Association is the mandatory statewide bar association of Washington State. As an administrative arm of the Washington State Supreme Court, it administers the admissions, licensing, and discipline functions for lawyers licensed in Washington. It also acts as their...
- Washington State Senior Citizens Lobby
- NAACPNational Association for the Advancement of Colored PeopleThe National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, usually abbreviated as NAACP, is an African-American civil rights organization in the United States, formed in 1909. Its mission is "to ensure the political, educational, social, and economic equality of rights of all persons and to...
, King County Chapter - over 260 other organizations
Newspapers:
- The ColumbianThe ColumbianThe Columbian is a daily newspaper for Vancouver, Washington and Clark County in Washington State in the United States. The paper was published for its first decade as a four page daily that was meant as a counterweight to the local Republican newspaper The Independent. Printer Tom Carolan began...
- Everett Herald
- The News Tribune
- The OlympianThe OlympianThe Olympian is a McClatchy newspaper in Olympia, Washington, in the United States.-History:The Olympian started in 1860 as "The Washington Standard" a weekly paper. Daily papers did not start until February 1889. The Olympian started daily service as a way to lead the crusade to make Olympia the...
- The OregonianThe OregonianThe Oregonian is the major daily newspaper in Portland, Oregon, owned by Advance Publications. It is the oldest continuously published newspaper on the U.S. west coast, founded as a weekly by Thomas J. Dryer on December 4, 1850...
- The Seattle TimesThe Seattle TimesThe Seattle Times is a newspaper serving Seattle, Washington, US. It is the largest daily newspaper in the state of Washington. It has been, since the demise in 2009 of the printed version of the rival Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Seattle's only major daily print newspaper.-History:The Seattle Times...
- Skagit Valley Herald
- The Spokesman-Review
- The StrangerThe Stranger (newspaper)The Stranger is an alternative weekly newspaper in Seattle, Washington, USA. It runs a blog known as Slog.-History:The Stranger was founded by Tim Keck, who had previously co-founded the satirical newspaper The Onion, and cartoonist James Sturm. Its first issue came out on September 23, 1991...
- Walla Walla Union-BulletinWalla Walla Union-BulletinThe Walla Walla Union-Bulletin is a newspaper based in Walla Walla, Washington and owned by the Seattle Times Company....
Endorsing a vote of "reject"
- Washington Values Alliance - Larry Stickney
- Washington State Republican PartyWashington State Republican PartyThe Washington State Republican Party is the state affiliate of the national Republican Party, headquartered in Bellevue.The Chairman of the Washington State Republican Party is Kirby Wilbur, former host of the morning drive show on 570 KVI radio in Seattle for over fourteen years. The Vice Chair...
- Washington Eagle ForumEagle ForumEagle Forum is a conservative interest group in the United States founded by Phyllis Schlafly in 1972 and is the parent organization that also includes the Eagle Forum Education and Legal Defense Fund and the Eagle Forum PAC. The Eagle Forum has been primarily focused on social issues; it describes...
- Cindy Honcoop - Pastor Ken Hutcherson, Antioch Bible Church
- Faith and Freedom Network - Gary Randall
- Christian Coalition of Washington - Rick Forcier
- YWAMYouth With A MissionYouth With A Mission is an international, inter-denominational, non-profit Christian missionary organization...
& US Renewal - Ron Boehme - Family Policy Institute of Washington
- Facts for Freedom - Jim Galbraith
- Washington Opposed to Pro-Homosexual Policies, Pastor Gary & Annetta Small
- Concerned Citizens of Pierce County - Pat Burgess
- The Reagan Wing - Doug Parris
- Constitution PartyConstitution Party (United States)The Constitution Party is a paleoconservative political party in the United States. It was founded as the U.S. Taxpayers' Party by Howard Philips in 1991. Phillips was the party's candidate in the 1992, 1996 and 2000 presidential elections...
of Washington State - Concerned Women for AmericaConcerned Women for AmericaConcerned Women for America is a conservative Christian public policy group active in the United States best known for its stance against abortion...
(Washington) - Spokane American Family Association - Wayne Lawson
- Knights of ColumbusKnights of ColumbusThe Knights of Columbus is the world's largest Catholic fraternal service organization. Founded in the United States in 1882, it is named in honor of Christopher Columbus....
, Bremerton Council - Washington State Catholic Conference.
Signature release controversy
The Washington State Constitution establishes the required number of signatures for ballot measures. Referendum sponsors must submit a number of signatures at least equal to 4% of the votes cast for the office of Governor in the most recent gubernatorial election in the state. The state contends that the papers on which these submitted signatures are collected are typically a matter of public record, claims that signing a petition for a referendum or initiative that qualifies for a ballot is a legislative act, and thus argues that voters are entitled to know who is behind such measures.Some individuals and a group called WhoSigned.org requested these signatures for the Referendum 71 ballot application. Protect Marriage Washington filed to block the release of these signatures, arguing that, "due to the highly charged nature of the topic of Referendum 71, (domestic partnerships, gay rights, the traditional definition of marriage, etc.) that the personal information on the petitions for Referendum 71 warrant particular protection." The issue escalated to the U.S. Supreme Court
Supreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court in the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all state and federal courts, and original jurisdiction over a small range of cases...
where on October 19, 2009 Justice Kennedy
Anthony Kennedy
Anthony McLeod Kennedy is an Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court, having been appointed by President Ronald Reagan in 1988. Since the retirement of Sandra Day O'Connor, Kennedy has often been the swing vote on many of the Court's politically charged 5–4 decisions...
issued a temporary block to the release of the names and then the following day the Court voted 8-1 (with Clarence Thomas
Clarence Thomas
Clarence Thomas is an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. Succeeding Thurgood Marshall, Thomas is the second African American to serve on the Court....
being the lone dissenter) to withhold the signatures until the issue could receive a full hearing.
The Supreme Court heard full arguments in the case, Doe v. Reed
Doe v. Reed
Doe v. Reed, 561 U.S. ___ , is a United States Supreme Court case which holds that the disclosure of signatures on a referendum does not violate the First Amendment to the United States Constitution.-Background:...
, on April 28, 2010. The Supreme Court decision would likely set a precedent for public disclosure rules for all referendum and initiative petitions within all states which use those citizen procedures.
On June 24, 2010, the US Supreme Court rejected Protect Marriage Washington's claims in an 8-1 decision, with only Thomas dissenting. The court upheld the constitutionality of the Public Records Act under which the petition was requested. The question of whether to block release of the petition on narrower grounds was decided before the district court. Washington State's Office on Monday began making public the names of 137,500 people who signed Referendum 71 petitions two years ago to bring a domestic-partnership law to a public vote.
On October 23, one of the first installments of the R-71 petition
signature sheets was posted on the internet at
http://www.scribd.com/fullscreen/70033853?access_key=key-3t2tzmhrz6o74dakt2a
Advertisements in popular culture
Satirist Stephen ColbertStephen Colbert
Stephen Tyrone Colbert is an American political satirist, writer, comedian, television host, and actor. He is the host of Comedy Central's The Colbert Report, a satirical news show in which Colbert portrays a caricatured version of conservative political pundits.Colbert originally studied to be an...
made light of one advertisement created by Protect Marriage Washington on The Colbert Report's October 26, 2009, show. The ad asserts that in May 2004, gay marriage was legalized in Scandinavia
Scandinavia
Scandinavia is a cultural, historical and ethno-linguistic region in northern Europe that includes the three kingdoms of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, characterized by their common ethno-cultural heritage and language. Modern Norway and Sweden proper are situated on the Scandinavian Peninsula,...
and coincided with a suicide rate doubling and an illegal drug use increasing nineteen-fold. Colbert went on to say the ad was "terrifying," adding, "and that ad is no less terrifying just because there is no country called Scandinavia, none of the countries in Scandinavia passed gay marriage laws in 2004, and the statistics on suicide and drug use are made up."
See also
- Domestic partnership in WashingtonDomestic partnership in WashingtonState Registered Domestic Partnerships in Washington were created in the aftermath of the Andersen v. King County decision. Subsequent legislation has made a SRDP the equivalent of marriage under state law.-Beginnings:...
- Same-sex marriage in WashingtonSame-sex marriage in WashingtonSame-sex marriage is not recognized as marriage in Washington state. The Washington Supreme Court would have made Washington the second U.S. state to recognize these unions if it had decided differently in two cases that had been consolidated for appeal...
- California Proposition 8 (2008)California Proposition 8 (2008)Proposition 8 was a ballot proposition and constitutional amendment passed in the November 2008 state elections...