Maine GayNet - Low voter turnout could doom gay-rights law
Sunday, January 25, 1998

Low voter turnout could doom gay-rights law

  • Gay rights chronology
  • The ballot question
  • The major players
  • Other resources

    By PETER POCHNA and TESS NACELEWICZ
    Staff Writers
    ©Copyright 1998 Guy Gannett Communications
    Maine is about to decide whether its laws should protect homosexuals from discrimination. The issue has been a matter of heated debate between gay and religious groups since the 1970s.

    But with a vote to decide the issue just 16 days away, political analysts and advocates on both sides aren't sure that Maine's vast group of ''average middle'' voters care enough to go to the polls.

    In fact, they say that because of the unusual timing of the vote, many people don't even know the vote is taking place.

    Whether the ''average middle'' shows up on Feb. 10 could determine which side wins in what is expected to be a close election. If the turnout is low, analysts say that Maine's new gay-rights law will be overturned - before it can ever take effect.

    William Coogan, a political science professor at the University of Southern Maine, predicts voter turnout will be ''abysmally low,'' probably less than 20 percent.

    Coogan said surveys have shown that ''the Maine electorate is rather heavily in favor of civil rights for gays and lesbians.'' But with turnout so low, opponents of gay-rights legislation ''are going to have their voices magnified out of all proportion in the electorate.''

    To tap into voter sentiment, The Portland Newspapers interviewed 20 voters in Gorham. In 1995, in the only other statewide vote on gay rights, Gorham voted almost exactly as the state did - 53 percent to 47 percent against a proposal that would have prohibited legal protection for homosexuals in Maine.

    Most of the voters interviewed said they planned to vote. Some had strong opinions on the subject. But others had no idea that the referendum was taking place.

    Harold B. Esty, 47, a maintenance worker at the S.D. Warren paper mill, said, ''I don't really think it's that important.''

    He said his fellow workers don't talk much about the issue. ''When it comes to talking about the gay-rights bill, I don't really think these guys are interested.''

    Robert Abbott, 54, said he didn't know about the referendum, and didn't know how he would vote.

    ''I'd have to really sit down and give it some thought,'' Abbott said.

    The statewide ballot on Feb. 10 will ask voters if they want to overturn a law that the Maine Legislature passed last spring - after rejecting gay-rights bills nine times since 1977.

    The law would make it illegal to discriminate based on sexual orientation in credit, employment, housing and public accommodations. Ten states, including every other New England state, have similar laws in place.

    Maine's law has not taken effect because its opponents gathered more than 58,000 signatures on a petition last summer to force what's called a people's veto. Mainers have used the people's veto to second-guess lawmakers 22 times since 1909, most recently in 1980.

    The ballot question will read: ''Do you want to reject the law passed by the Legislature and signed by the governor that would ban discrimination based on sexual orientation with respect to jobs, housing, public accommodations and credit?''

    A yes vote would kill the law. A no vote would allow the law to take effect 30 days after the election results become official.

    The vote has received little attention, in part, because the election date was set by Gov. Angus King just nine weeks ago.

    For the last two weeks, the campaign has been overshadowed by the ice storm that destroyed much of Maine's electric system and seized the attention of most residents.

    Now, both gay-rights groups and those who want to repeal the law are scrambling to rally people to their side. They are calling voters to find supporters and encourage them to get to the polls.

    Paul Volle, executive director of the Christian Coalition of Maine, a group trying to overturn the law, said he's finding that many voters are not interested in the issue.

    But he said the ''vote yes'' side can benefit from a low turnout, because of its strong core of supporters formed during last summer's petition drive.

    ''I don't think we'll be able to reach the average voter on this,'' Volle said. ''I don't think the average voter will get out to vote in a special election. Quite truthfully, it will be decided by the ideologues.''

    Gay-rights groups agree that a low voter turnout would hurt them, and say that the ice storm sapped the momentum of their campaign. They plan a push in the final two weeks that will include mailings and TV ads.

    They are better prepared to launch an advertising campaign. Through Jan. 5, they had raised about $203,000, compared to $54,000 for their opponents.

    ''So far there hasn't been much interest,'' said Joe Cooper, a spokesman for Maine Won't Discriminate, the group leading the campaign against the ballot question. ''A lot of people have been preoccupied with the storm. We're doing everything we can to really try to get this issue in focus for people.''

    Increasing the challenge of getting people to the polls is the fact that Mainers voted on gay rights as recently as 1995, when they rejected the ballot question that would have prohibited gay-rights ordinances.

    Coogan said, ''I think most people believe the election is over.''

    And since people are not used to voting in February, they are not making an effort to update themselves on the issue.

    ''The average voter in the middle has no idea what's on the ballot,'' said Christian Potholm, a professor of government at Bowdoin College.

    Some Gorham voters, however, do know what's on the ballot, and have strong opinions about it.

    Susan Cutting-Speed, a 38-year-old elementary school teacher, said she will vote to uphold the gay-rights law.

    ''I have a real issue with the people who are standing behind this (referendum),'' she said. ''I think they have a very narrow point of view. I just like to think that we live in state that is more tolerant.''

    David Kent, a loan officer for the federal government, said he will cast a ''yes'' vote.

    ''As far as I'm concerned there's already protection on the books,'' said Kent, who is 54. ''I think we've gone too far with some of this stuff. I think it's already sanding over the same ice twice.''

    Nearly half of the voters contacted either weren't interested in the issue, didn't know about the vote or weren't planning to vote.

    ''This is just too confusing,'' said Vivian Panerese, 71, who was not aware of the referendum.

    George Ayers, a retired college professor, said he plans to vote but does not feel strongly about the issue.

    ''I haven't given it much thought,'' said Ayers, who is 70. ''I do wonder why it was necessary to pass special legislation for this purpose.''

    Anne Kozloff, a farm owner, said she wasn't sure if she would vote. She said the fact that the issue keeps coming up is wearisome.

    ''It doesn't matter if it's the blacks or the Hispanics or the Asians or the gays, everybody is supposed to have a little more rights than anyone else,'' said the 35-year-old independent. ''I'm tired of it.''

    Gay rights chronology

    The issue of gay-rights legislation in Maine can be traced back more than 20 years. The state Legislature rejected gay-rights bills repeatedly from the 1970s until 1993, when legislators approved a bill but Gov. John R. McKernan vetoed it. Here are some of the key events of the last two decades:
    June 2, 1977: The state Senate joins the House in killing a bill that would forbid discrimination against homosexuals in housing, employment and credit.
    April 26, 1979: The House kills gay-rights legislation.
    May 12, 1981: After a House debate that becomes so heated that the gallery is cleared of children, representatives vote 99-38 to reject a bill to include homosexuals in the Maine Human Rights Act against discrimination.
    May 17, 1983: The House kills a gay-rights bill, 101-37, even though the Senate has approved it.
    June 1985: Gay-rights legislation dies after Portland Rep. Laurence E. Connolly Jr. fails to persuade his colleagues to at least allow a study of discrimination against homosexuals.
    May 1987: The state House and Senate both reject gay-rights legislation.
    May 31, 1989: Despite House approval of a bill to ban discrimination in the areas of credit, housing, accommodations and jobs, the state Senate kills the bill after a majority of senators reject an amendment specifying that the measure would not give special privileges to homosexuals.
    April 16, 1991: For the eighth time in 14 years, the Legislature kills a gay-rights bill, as the House turns it down on a 75-56 vote.
    May 11, 1992: The Portland City Council passes an ordinance banning discrimination based on sexual orientation. It is Maine's first such ordinance, and allows victims of discrimination to sue violators.
    Nov. 3, 1992: The city ordinance withstands a challenge by a group called Concerned Portland Citizens. After a heated campaign, voters uphold the ordinance, 19,643 votes to 14,770.
    Jan. 7, 1993: The Lewiston City Council passes an ordinance banning discrimination based on sexual orientation.
    May 4, 1993: For the first time, the Legislature passes a statewide gay-rights bill. However, Gov. John R. McKernan vetos the bill, saying it ''just goes too far.'' The bill's margin of support is too small for the Legislature to override the veto.
    Nov. 2, 1993: By a 2-to-1 ratio, voters in Lewiston overturn their city's gay-rights ordinance.
    Jan. 12, 1995: Carolyn Cosby and her Concerned Maine Families mount a petition drive that puts Question 1 on the statewide ballot. The proposal would prohibit gay-rights laws from being passed anywhere in Maine and invalidate the only existing ordinances, in Portland and Long Island.
    March 9, 1995: Gay-rights advocates say they will not submit a bill this year. Instead, they will wait until after voters decide on Question 1.
    Nov. 7, 1995: Question 1 is rejected by a 53 percent to 47 percent margin, leaving opponents of the measure overjoyed and referendum supporters defiant and disbelieving.
    May 1997: After 20 years of debate, legislators approve a bill making it illegal to discriminate against homosexuals in Maine. Gov. Angus King signs the bill on May 16, but the law does not take effect because of a petition drive asking Maine voters to overturn it.
    Sept. 18, 1997: The Christian Civic League of Maine and the Christian Coalition of Maine submit 65,256 petition signatures to the secretary of state calling for a statewide vote to repeal the gay-rights law.
    Oct. 20, 1997: Secretary of State Dan Gwadosky rules that the groups have 58,182 valid signatures, more than enough to get the question on the ballot. Supporters of the new law respond with a lawsuit claiming that a referendum should not be held because numerous mistakes were made in the way the petitions were circulated and signed.
    Nov. 21, 1997: Superior Court Justice Roland A. Cole supports the secretary of state's approval of petitions to force the referendum, rejecting a claim that the Christian Coalition of Maine and the Christian Civic League of Maine began circulating the petitions before it was legally allowed.
    Nov. 26, 1997: King schedules a statewide vote on Maine's gay-rights law for Feb. 10 after opponents of the referendum say they won't go to the state Supreme Court to block the vote.

    - Research by Susan Butler, library assistant.

    The ballot question

    The ballot question in the Feb. 10 gay-rights referendum will ask voters:
    ''Do you want to reject the law passed by the Legislature and signed by the governor that would ban discrimination based on sexual orientation with respect to jobs, housing, public accommodations and credit?''
    If a majority of Maine voters votes ''yes,'' the law will be repealed. The Legislature could decide later to pass an identical or similar law.
    If a majority votes ''no,'' the law will take effect 30 days after the governor proclaims the results of the election. The governor cannot issue the proclamation until the Secretary of State's Office sends him the official results, which must be done by March 3.
    - Sources: Julie Flynn, director of the state Bureau of Corporations, Elections and Commissions; Phyllis Gardiner, an assistant attorney general.

    The major players

    Here are some of the groups that either support or oppose the Feb. 10 referendum to repeal Maine's new gay rights law:
  • SUPPORTING REPEAL: The American Family Association, Tupelo, Miss.
    Christian Civic League of Maine
    Christian Coalition of Maine
    Focus on the Family, Colorado Springs, Colo.
    Women's Christian Temperance Union

  • OPPOSING REPEAL: Dirigo Alliance
    Greater Portland Chamber of Commerce
    League of Women Voters of Maine
    Maine AFL-CIO
    Maine Business for Social Responsibility
    Maine Chamber and Business Alliance
    Maine Chapter of the National Association of Social Workers
    Maine Council of Churches
    Maine Council of Senior Citizens
    Maine Democratic Party
    Maine Education Association
    Maine People's Alliance
    Maine Psychological Association
    Maine Women's Fund
    National Pediatric Society, Maine chapter
    N.O.W. Maine Chapter
    Religious Coalition Against Discrimination
    Unitarian Universalists Minister's Association - New England District

    Other resources

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