Anti-gay forces in Maryland began their fight against marriage equality, The Advocate and Associated Press report. Maryland Marriage Alliance officially started collecting nearly 56,000 signatures needed to put a referendum on November’s ballot—by June 30.
Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley, who signed the marriage equality bill early this month
“Against the will of the overwhelming majority of the people of Maryland, the legislature has voted to legalize same-sex marriage. But the people of Maryland will have the final say on marriage,” the group said on its website.
Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley signed a marriage equality bill on March 1. The state Senate passed the legislation by a vote of 25-22, leading Maryland to become the nation’s eighth state supporting marriage equality. The law takes effect in Jan. 2013.
Maryland Marriage Alliance partnered with mdpetitions.com to mail petitions to registered voters requesting them to sign the petition to allow voters to decide on the gay marriage bill. A January Washington Post poll noted 44 percent of Marylanders oppose marriage equality, while 50 percent support it.
Photo: Maryland.gov
