Governor Lynch Should Sign Marriage Bill

Washington, DC - Today, the Stonewall Democrats released the following statement in response to the passage of marriage legislation by the New Hampshire Senate.

"The people of New Hampshire have voiced their support for the freedom to marry and when the final version of this legislation is sent to his desk, Stonewall Democrats call upon Governor Lynch to quickly sign this legislation into law.  The New Hampshire Democratic Party and majorities in both the New Hampshire House and Senate support the freedom of all Granite Staters to legally marry."

- Jon Hoadley, Executive Director, Stonewall Democrats

In a 13-11 vote, the New Hampshire Senate voted to approve legislation allowing same-sex couples the freedom to marry, although the version passed was slightly different than the version passed by the House of Representatives.  13 Democrats voted in favor of the legislation. One Democrat opposed.  All 10 Senate Republicans voted in opposition to the legislation.  Similar legislation legislation has already approved by the New Hampshire House of Representatives and now goes before Democratic Governor John Lynch who has not yet indicated how he will act on the bill.

The New Hampshire Stonewall Democrats were active in the coalition which built support for passage of this bill.  Stonewall Democrats serving in the New Hampshire General Court lobbied fellow lawmakers on behalf of the legislation, and the statewide group spent two years building Democratic support which included the passage of a pro-marriage plank in the platform of the New Hampshire Democratic Party.  Additionally, Stonewall Democrats actively campaigned for the election of Ray Buckley as Chair of the New Hampshire Democratic Party.  Buckley, a Stonewall Democrat and former board member of the national organization, is currently the only openly-gay state Democratic chair and serves as a Vice Chair of the Democratic National Committee.  Under his leadership, the New Hampshire Democratic Party communicated with local Democrats and lawmakers regarding the need for the freedom to marry.  Other organizations leading on securing the freedom to marry in New Hampshire include the New Hampshire Freedom to Marry group, GLAD, and the Human Rights Campaign, and others which invested significant resources over several years within the Granite State.

Stonewall Democrats continue to build support for the freedom to marry in addition to working on broader pro-equality issues.  In Wyoming, the organization worked with the newly-forming Wyoming Stonewall Democrats earlier this year to help Democrats stop an anti0marriage ballot initiative introduced in the state legislature.  In Massachusetts, the Bay State Stonewall Democrats played a key role in building Democratic support for marriage legislation enacted in 2004.  Last month, two Stonewall Democrats - Kate and Trish Varnum - won a landmark decision by the Iowa Supreme Court (Varnum V. Brien) that recognized the rights of all Iowans to Marry.  Stonewall Democrats is continuing its work in Iowa by aiding statewide advocates liek One Iowa to build support for the Democratic Leadership of the Iowa House and Senate who continue to stand against an onslaught of special-interest attacks from the far right.  And last month in Vermont, Stonewall Democrats initiated a campaign that contributed to three Democratic lawmakers switching their previously anti-marriage votes in order to override a gubernatorial veto and enact marriage legislation in that state.

Stonewall Democrats is disappointed that the Senate chose not to take action on a fully-inclusive non-discrimination bill at this point.  The organization will continue to build support for the bill in order to win passage.

With more than 120 local chapters the Stonewall Democrats is the national organization of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) and allied Democrats.  Stonewall Democrats works to elect pro-equality Democrats to public office and improve the Democratic Party on issues important to pro-equality Americans.

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