Supporters & Opponents Of Gay Marriage Raise Funds Ahead Of November Referendum
BALTIMORE (WJZ)-- Marylanders may be bombarded with ads for and against same-sex marriage. Supporters on both sides of the issue are planning their strategies which, as Political Reporter Pat Warren explains, includes some high-level fundraising.
From lawmakers to fundraisers. After signing the bill into law, Gov. Martin O'Malley and House of Delegates Speaker Michael Busch are raising money to get voters to support same-sex marriage on the November ballot.
"The governor has been behind us all the way from the legislative process, now signing the law and now helping us make sure we can defend it on the ballot," Josh Levine of Marylanders for Marriage Equality said.
E-mail is just one of the governor's many appeals to Marylanders to contribute to a same-sex marriage campaign. Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake is attending a fundraiser for same-sex marriage this weekend.
More than 100,000 voters have signed a petition to put the issue up for a vote in November, and Derek McCoy of the Maryland Marriage Alliance which supports traditional marriage tells WJZ he believes the governor and the mayor are out of line.
"Well, obviously they have chosen to represent a portion of their constituency. I think they're really shortsighted in their fundraising efforts, " he said. "They should be considering where other people are on the issue within our state."
Both sides intend to raise as much money and wage as effective a campaign as possible. The Board of Elections has to certify the referendum for the November ballot by August 20.
