California AG reverses position on gay marriage

[tazber]

Posted: 12/23/08 at 1:00pm

And asks for prop 8 to be overturned.

The article says he's a strong contender to be the next governor of CA.
So, does this mean he realizes the importance of the gay vote? Is the gay vote in CA really that influential anyway?
Link

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 12/23/08 at 1:01pm

We flatter ourselves when we boast of our electoral power. And fool ourselves too.

[tazber]

Posted: 12/23/08 at 1:05pm

See, that's what I think too, Namo.

I was just trying to figure out what Brown's "angle" was. What political advantage could Brown gain by suddenly reversing his position on such an incendiary issue?

Posted: 12/23/08 at 1:10pm

It's Jerry Brown. He's nuts. They used to refer to him as Governor Moonbeam.

[papalovesmambo]

Posted: 12/23/08 at 1:55pm

jerry brown's the ag out there? seriously???

[MrMidwest]

Posted: 12/23/08 at 1:59pm

Does anyone know what the percentage of gay people who actually vote is?

[PalJoey]

Posted: 12/23/08 at 2:10pm

How can anyone quantify the number of semi-closeted voters who would never say they're homosexual on polls?

[Hest882]

Posted: 12/23/08 at 2:11pm

Jerry Brown, as AG, actually re-wrote Prop 8 specifically in the hopes the wording would encite people to vote against it. There were news stories about it prior to Nov. However, he then agreed he'd uphold whatever law that was passed as part of his AG position. I'm not surprised he's reversed that though, since he's personally against Prop 8, but as a political animal I'm sure his not-very-secret ambition to run again for governor entered into it. Is the gay vote influential in CA? It is in the metropolitan regions, and that dates back to the late 70s. I also think the furor over Prop 8 and the slim margin by which it passed is enough so that all moderate to left-leaning politicians in CA are sensing that it could be a spotlight issue.

[MrMidwest]

Posted: 12/23/08 at 3:08pm

"How can anyone quantify the number of semi-closeted voters who would never say they're homosexual on polls?"

You can't, I guess, but I'd still be interested to know how the number of people who say they're gay on the polls compares to the general consensus on how many gay people there are in America.

I'd also like to know how much closer the election would have been without the 70% of GLBT voters who allegedly cast their votes for Obama.

[artscallion]

Posted: 12/23/08 at 3:12pm

"A recent study by San Francisco-based Community Marketing Inc. found an eye-popping 92.5% of gay men report they voted in the 2004 presidential race, and almost 84% said they cast ballots in the 2006 midterm election. Among lesbians, the results were almost as impressive; nearly 91% in 2004 and 78% in 2006.

By comparison, the Washington-based Committee for the Study of the American Electorate puts the turnout for all Americans eligible to vote at about 61% in 2004 and roughly 40% in 2006."

This doesn't tell you how many gays voted, just how many of the gays say they voted. But it's a start.

Updated On: 12/23/08 at 03:12 PM

[Hest882]

Posted: 12/23/08 at 3:27pm

It's also not just about how many gay voters there are; it's also about the perception of gay political clout.

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 1/19/09 at 5:12am

http://sfist.com/2009/01/17/get_this_on_television_now.php