Washington gay ‘marriage’ law stopped after opponents gather 240,000 signatures
WASHINGTON, June 8, 2012 (LifeSiteNews.com) — Washington State’s new gay “marriage” law has been halted one day before it was set to come into effect, after Preserve Marriage Washington (PMW) collected and filed over 240,000 signatures opposing the redefinition of marriage.
The “marriage” law, signed by Governor Chris Gregoire, would have made Washington the seventh state to legalize gay “marriages.”
Brian Brown, president of National Organization for Marriage,commended PMW, stating that the successful signature campaign demonstrates the “deep support that traditional marriage enjoys” and “sets the stage for a tremendous victory for marriage this November.”
“The signature gathering effort produced more signatures than have ever been collected by any referendum committee in the history of the state,” Brown declared.
The submitted signatures will be reviewed over the next week, to determine if they are sufficient to qualify to put a referendum to protect true marriage on the November ballot. The number of signatures submitted, however, is over twice the amount necessary to qualify for a public vote.
“We are… confident of victory,” Brown declared. “Thirty-two states in America have voted on marriage and every one has stood for traditional marriage, and rejected redefining marriage. We have no doubt that Washington State will do the same.”
The issue has further political repercussions, with President Barrack Obama now being a public supporter of same-sex “marriage,” and R-74 – the marriage referendum measure - having divided Washington state’s two candidates for governor.
Three other states – Maine, Minnesota and Maryland – are all set to have public referenda on the marriage issue this November.
