Gay marriage foes challenge ballot wording

Gay marriage foes challenge ballot wording

by By Jessica Garrison - Jul. 28, 2008 07:15 PM
Los Angeles Times
Supporters of Proposition 8, the proposed California constitutional amendment that would ban gay marriage, said they would file suit Tuesday to block a change made by state Attorney General Jerry Brown to the language of the measure's ballot title and summary.

Petitions circulated to qualify the initiative for the ballot said it would amend the state constitution "to provide that only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California."

Last week, in a move applauded by same-sex marriage proponents, Brown's office changed the language on the ballot title and summary of Prop. 8 to say that the measure seeks to "eliminate the right of same-sex couples to marry."

Jennifer Kerns, spokeswoman for the Protect Marriage coalition, called the new language "inherently argumentative" and said it could "prejudice voters against the initiative."

Proponents of the measure said they want voters to see ballot language similar to what was on the petitions that qualified the measure.

"This is a complete about face from the ballot title that was assigned" when the measure was being circulated for signatures to get on the petition, Kern said.

On the other side, Steve Smith, campaign manager for No on Proposition 8, applauded the language change.

"What Proposition 8 would do is eliminate the right of same-sex couples to marry, which is exactly what the attorney general put in the title of the measure," he said. "It will be very difficult for them to win the case."

Political analysts on both sides suggest that the language change would make passage of the initiative more difficult, noting that voters might be more reluctant to pass something that makes clear it is taking away existing rights.

The dust-up reflects the battle that is being waged over the question of same-sex marriage in California, the most closely watched social issue on the fall ballot. And it has raised suspicion in some quarters that Brown, a possible candidate for governor in 2010, was influenced by politics.

"He is delivering something ... that is very important to the gay community, and that is a title and summary that is more likely to lead you to vote No,' " Republican political analyst Tony Quinn said.

San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom, a darling of the gay and lesbian community since he began marrying gay couples four years ago, is also exploring a run for governor.

Quinn added that the language change is "highly unusual."

Gareth Lacy, a spokesman for Brown, denied that there was any political motivation for the move.

Instead, he said, the changes to the language were necessary because of the turn of events that have taken place since the petitions were circulated: namely that the California Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage and thousands of gay couples have since wed.

"The title and summary accurately reflect the measure," he said.

Lacy noted that language in titles and summaries often changes between the time a measure is circulated for signatures and when it appears on the ballot.

In another change, the revised language predicts a loss to state and local governments of tens of millions of dollars in sales tax revenues over the next few years if the measure passes.