I imagine they’ve been asked some insulting questions pertaining to their sexuality, but Question 1 is the probably the only one that has the potential to legally codify their status as second-class citizens.
Much like California’s Proposition 8, the people’s veto that Mainers vote on today would strip gays of the right to marry, a right they were given by both branches of the state legislature and Governor John Baldacci in May of this year.
Also like Proposition 8, many of the same activists from both sides have returned, with the anti-gay forces going so far to recycle the “They’ll teach gay marriage in schools” canard in ads where the admen barely went through the effort of switching state names.
Whatever the final results are, the vote will be a close one. Question 1 was in a statistical dead heat in the most recent batch of polls. While it’s natural to hope for the best, the reality is that if the abhorrent question is beaten back, it would be the first to buck what has been a long line of popular votes to side against the gays.
