同性婚禁止の勢いとどまらず～改憲案可決は19州に

Report: $13M Spent on Gay Marriage Fight
By ROBERT TANNER, AP National Writer
Tue Jan 24, 10:00 AM ET

The 2004 election campaigns that ultimately banned same-sex marriages in 13 states were funded by a mix of national groups, churches and individuals, with ban supporters narrowly outraising opponents and total contributions breaking $13 million, according to a new analysis of state-level fundraising.

Supporters of the state constitutional amendments raised $6.8 million for ballot committees; opponents raised $6.5 million, according to the study by The Institute on Money in State Politics, a nonpartisan research organization in Helena, Mont.

The single largest block of givers were advocates of gay and lesbian rights, donating more than $3 million.

Conservative organizations affiliated with a network called the Arlington Group gave nearly $2 million, the report found. Churches also invested heavily, contributing $1.9 million, overwhelmingly in favor of bans on same-sex marriage.

Despite the nearly even split of the $13.3 million raised by ballot committees, the amendments passed overwhelmingly, sometimes by as much as a 3-to-1 ratio. The closest vote, in Oregon, passed with 57 percent in favor of a ban and 43 percent against.

The two sides together spent more than $2 million in each of several battleground states, including Michigan, Oregon and Ohio. But much less went into campaigns elsewhere, with under $100,000 spent in a half-dozen states, and less than $10,000 total in Mississippi and North Dakota.

The fight over gay marriages isn't over. Texas voters in November approved a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage, though Maine voters rejected a conservative push to repeal a new law that outlawed discrimination based on sexual orientation.

Efforts have begun to put same-sex bans before voters in at least seven more states, according to the report.

"There was a coordinated effort to bring this issue to the ballot in a number of states," said research director Sue O'Connell.

Conservative groups affiliated with the Arlington Group included Focus on the Family and the Family Research Council, whose leaders had been outspoken against gay and lesbian marriages after Massachusetts' high court found that the state constitution allowed same-sex marriages.

Among the big-spending advocates of gay and lesbian rights were the Human Rights Campaign and the National Gay & Lesbian Task Force.

In all, 19 states have passed constitutional amendments outlawing same-sex marriage. Only one state — Connecticut — has enacted a law legalizing civil unions without a court order.

同性婚禁止の勢いとどまらず～改憲案可決は19州に (USフロントライン 2006/01/24)

　2004年の選挙で同性婚の禁止を支持した候補者への寄付額が、わずかに反対派への寄付額を上回っていたことが分かった。

　AP通信が報じた超党派研究機関、政治資金研究所（IMSP）の調査によると、同性婚禁止を条項に盛り込む改憲案の支持派は680万ドル、反対派は650万ドルを資金として集めた。

　最も高額の寄付は同性愛者の人権支援団体で、300万ドルだった。改憲支持派では、アーリントン・グループと呼ばれるネットワークに属する保守系団体が200万ドル、教会が190万ドルを集めた。

　両派でほぼ同額の資金が集められたにもかかわらず、投票では支持票３に対し反対票１など圧倒的な比率で改憲案を可決した州が多かった。最も僅差だったオレゴン州でも、支持票が57％を占めた。

　オレゴンやミシガン、オハイオなど激戦州では、同性婚をめぐってそれぞれ200万ドル以上の資金が費やされた。一方、他の６州では10万ドル以下、ミシシッピとノースダコタでは１万ドル以下しかキャンペーンに充てられなかった。

　同性婚をめぐる論争はまだ終わったわけではない。テキサス州は昨年11月、住民投票で改憲案を承認したが、メイン州は同性愛者差別禁止法を撤廃しようとした保守派の提案を拒絶した。さらに７州が、改憲案を住民投票にかける予定だ。

　これまでに改憲案を可決した州は19州に達している。しかし、シビル・ユニオン（結婚とほぼ同等の権利を認める制度）を合法化した州はコネチカットのみだ。