A lot of people in my area seem to express a lackadaisical attitude towards voting. They are not disgusted with the process, nor are they disappointed with the President. They simply live in a very blue state and, if they live in a blue neighborhood as well they, they kinda, sorta mean to vote, but they're not exactly worried about it because the person they support will probably be elected. In the city council race to represent my neighborhood last year, there wasn't even a Republican on the ballot. In my congressional district, MD 3, aka "The Pinwheel of Death," John Sarbanes is currently polling at over sixty percent.
My concern with this is that many of these people may very well support marriage equality, but, if they're not passionate about it, it might not be on their radar. We're having a referendum on it this year. The polls on the subject have been all over the place. Personally, I'm optimistic, but it is by no means guaranteed. We absolutely need those lackadaisical voters with kind-of-liberal-if-they-stop-to-think-about-it views to get to the polls this year.
So, if you have friends in Maryland, encourage them to be on the right side of history. It's Question 6, the Civil Marriage Protection Act.
Establishes that Maryland’s civil marriage laws allow gay and lesbian couples to
obtain a civil marriage license, provided they are not otherwise prohibited from
marrying; protects clergy from having to perform any particular marriage ceremony
in violation of their religious beliefs; affirms that each religious faith has exclusive
control over its own theological doctrine regarding who may marry within that faith;
and provides that religious organizations and certain related entities are not required
to provide goods, services, or benefits to an individual related to the celebration or
promotion of marriage in violation of their religious beliefs.
This law has taken a somewhat unusual course and I've met people who are confused by it. Last March,
Governor O'Malley signed into law a bill legalizing same sex marriage. However, it is not scheduled to go into effect until next year. I've actually met a few "low information" voters who think the matter was settled. However, it wasn't.
From the League of Women Voter's Voter's Guide:
The Maryland Constitution allows voters to repeal legislation that was passed by the General Assembly if 3% of the registered voters of the state. . . sign petitions to repeal the law. . . . The Maryland State Board of Elections determined that sufficient signatures were submitted to place the question of whether the Civil Marriage Protection Act should remain in effect on the November 2012 ballot.
So, this is slightly confusing. Signs are starting to go up in front yards, but I hope everyone understands that "Yes" on Question 6 means that you support the right of same sex couples to marry.
If you have friends in Maryland who are not passionate about politics, make sure to remind them about this measure being on the ballot and double check that they have the meaning of "Yes" and "No" understood correctly.