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Colorado searches for civil union sponsor, early voting begins on NC marriage ban

Colorado searches for civil union sponsor, early voting begins on NC marriage ban

Civil unions head to the Senate in Colorado, but nobody seems to be quite sure who’s going to sponsor the bill once it reaches the House. Early voting’s begun in North Carolina, just in time for a big TV ad buy starting this week. And the bumpy road to repealing Ohio’s marriage ban just got bumpier.

This week’s Marriage News Watch report is here:

Following is a transcript of this week’s report:

We’re closer than ever to passing civil unions in Colorado, but there are still a few more hurdles to jump. Last week the civil unions bill narrowly passed a senate committee along party lines. Now it moves to the full Senate, where it’s expected to pass in a vote this coming week.

From there, it’s on to the House, where some questions remain about its likelihood to pass. Backers are still searching for someone to sponsor the bill, preferring to have a Republican lawmaker attached. And even if they can find a sponsor before the end of the session on May 9, passage is far from assured.

But while legislators wrangle, the bill’s a big winner with voters. Sixty-two percent of voters support it, according to a new survey. And setting this bill aside, the survey shows that 75% of voters support some form of relationship recognition. That includes 47% who support marriage equality over civil unions. And when civil unions are taken out of the equation and marriage is the only option, a majority — 53% — are in favor of that.

Colorado voters have rapidly come to see why committed LGBT couples deserve the freedom to marry. Now the only question is whether their legislators will do the same.

Early voting has begun in North Carolina, where voters face a Constitutional Amendment that would ban any form of relationship recognition outside of opposite-sex marriage.

The campaign to stop the Amendment and protect LGBTs will launch a television campaign on Monday of this week, leaving just 15 days to go before the primary on May 8th. Polling is close, even though a wide range of officials and organizations have condemned the measure. That includes Rev. William Barber, president of the North Carolina NAACP, who spoke out against Amendment One just a few days ago. You can visit ProtectNCFamilies.org to connect with the campaign.

Attempts to repeal an anti-gay constitutional amendment in Ohio continue to face opposition.

Freedom to Marry Ohio is collecting signatures to overturn the law, but this week anti-gay activists filed a lawsuit in an attempt to stop them. The state’s other major LGBT organizations have yet to take a firm stand on the repeal process, citing unresolved questions about timing and strategy.

We’re expecting important developments in Ohio, North Carolina, and Colorado this week. You stay on top of all of them by subscribing to this channel, and visit AFER over on Twitter and Facebook for on the federal fight to overturn Prop 8.

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