VoteOnMarriage.org is an American political organization in the state of Massachusetts. It is an organization that is dedicated to the passage of a constitutional amendment to the Constitution of Massachusetts to ban same-sex marriage. Their goal was to have the amendment voted on by the people of Massachusetts in the 2008 general election; they failed, and the earliest that such a vote could now take place is in 2012.

Overview

Lead by evangelical preachers Dr. Roberto S. Miranda and Kris Mineau, the group was successful in getting the Massachusetts General Court to vote on the proposed ban on future same sex marriages. The vote for the ban was 62 for, and 132 against. However, the Constitution of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts requires that only twenty-five percent or fifty votes are needed to pass the amendment on to a second Constitutional Convention during the 2007-2009 term of the General Court. This second vote was defeated with only 45 members voting in favor, which means that the issue will be kept off the 2008 ballot and same sex marriage will remain legal in Massachusetts until at least 2012.

Beliefs

The group claims to be a broad coalition of Massachusetts residents who want to preserve the sanctity of marriage. Though they oppose gay marriage, they have stated ther support for the Benefits Fairness Act, a bill in the General Court that would give the same full rights and to same-sex couples as heterosexual couples with the exception of marriage. Their stated position on gay marriage is as follows.

Marriage as the union of a man and a woman is the universal model and predates all nations, religions and laws. The heterosexual marital relationship reflects the fundamental essence of laws of nature and anatomy, and ensures procreation and the nurturing of children. Tens of thousands of studies have proven that the best environment for raising children is a father and a mother living in a lasting, committed marriage relationship.

No-fault divorce, the last social experiment to which the institution of marriage was subjected, has been a 30-year disaster. More than 50 percent of marriages now end in divorce and half the nation's children are living in motherless or fatherless homes. Children living without a father or a mother are more likely to be vulnerable to health problems and are much more likely to be treated for emotional and behavioral problems. Efforts are needed to strengthen the institution, not to further erode it.

Redefining marriage to accommodate homosexuals rejects and changes the proven formula for healthy families and children to satisfy the sexual desires of a small percentage of adults. Homosexual marriage - by definition - creates motherless and fatherless families. There is no substitute for having both a mother and father; it takes a mother and a father to create a child and every child has the right to be raised by a mother and a father. No child should be deprived of these inalienable rights as a matter of public policy.

Controversy

VoteOnMarriage.org has been accused that during their petition drive they employed 'bait and switch' techniques to obtain signatures on their petition drive. WFXT Fox 25 News in Boston discovered while using hidden cameras that supporters of VoteOnMarriage.org tricked shoppers outside a supermarket into signing their petition to ban gay-marriage by claiming that the petition was really to allow for supermarkets to sell wine.

On January 9, 2006, shortly after a news report of a paid signature gatherer alleging to the media she defrauded citizens, VoteOnMarriage.org sent a letter to the Secretary of State of Massachusetts asking his office to investigate the matter. The letter details that VoteOnMarriage.org sought to comply fully with all applicable laws during the signature gathering process and had been found in full compliance by the Attorney General.

The letter also raised grave concerns about the legitimacy of petition complaint reporting processes established by the organization KnowThyNeighbor.org. Both organizations offer searchable, online databases listing the names of marriage petition signers. Each website invites citizens to search their database and make a complaint to their office and/or to the offices of Secretary of State Galvin, Attorney General Reilly and state legislators if their name was listed but they did not wish to sign the petition.

While VoteOnMarriage.org respects the First Amendment rights of these organizations, their online complaint process itself allows fraud in that it fails to authenticate the identity of the citizens filing complaints. Any person may pose as a disgruntled marriage petition signer, in essence stealing a legitimate signer’s identity, and lodge a fallacious complaint of fraud.

In addition, VoteOnMarriage.org has received a significant number of contacts from petition signers who themselves have received harassing and intimidating live and automated phone calls, as well as mailings, from MassEquality. As has been cited in media reports, these citizens have been frightened that their identities have been stolen and believe the calls and letters are intended to harass and intimidate them.

“We have no objection to efforts to expose as-of-yet unknown instances of alleged fraud, however, we do object to the manner in which they are carrying out their anti-vote campaign,” said Kris Mineau, spokesman VoteOnMarriage.org and president, Massachusetts Family Institute.

The deadline period for filing complaints with the Election’s Division of the Secretary of the Commonwealth’s office related to the petition process was January 6, 2006. No formal challenges to the VoteOnMarriage.org signature-gathering effort were filed.

Despite Voteonmarriage.org's protests, several instances of signature fraud have been documented by various news outlets. Voteonmarriage.org denies any knowledge of such fraud. ;

Prospects

Though supporters and administrators are enthusiastic about their chances of passing the amendment, the reality is that according to a poll conducted by the Boston Globe and WBZ-TV 50% of voters in Massachusetts support the State's Supreme Judicial Court and its ruling in Goodridge v. Dept. of Public Health, while only 38% opposed the ruling. A second poll by the Boston Herald found a similar showing of support with 49% supporting the decision and 38% opposed. In response to such polls, VoteOnMarriage.org frequently cites a poll conducted by the State House News Service in Massachusetts by its request. While polls commissioned by lobbying organizations have reliability limitations, this poll found that an overwhelming 75% of registered voters believe that the people, not the courts, should decide on the definition of marriage in Massachusetts.

References

Jacobs, Ethan (Feb. 2007) "VoteOnMarriage.org's Wikipedia Page" Bay Windows Boston. Retrieved on 2007-2-18

External links

• VoteOnMarriage.Org
• Unofficial synopsis and text of the decision from the Massachusetts court system website.
• http://www.gmax.co.za/look/11/24-USmarriage.html
• Fox 25 News broadcast pertaining to the alleged illegal petition practices by VoteOnMarriage.org
• Knowthyneighbor.org Leading pro-marriage equality organization that has challenged the VoteOnMarriage.Org petition.