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It’s official! Governor Chris Gregoire and Secretary of State Sam Reed certified the election results on Tuesday. The new domestic partnership law will now go into effect at 12:01 a.m. Thursday, December 3. There are currently 13,082 people in registered domestic partnerships in both same-sex couples and opposite-sex couples where at least one partner is 62 or older. Washington state registered domestic partners are now fully equal to their married peers under Washington state law.
Judging by the final vote tally, I’d say that Josh Friedes was right when he said this:
The mere turning in of signatures – even if it’s enough to qualify [the referendum for the ballot] – is not a barometer of the level of support for the legal recognition of gay and lesbian couples in the state. – Josh Friedes, Approve 71 Campaign Manager
He and the leadership at Washington Families Standing Together were also right about our main challenge being the get-out-the-vote effort necessitated by the difference between support for domestic partnerships and/or marriage equality in the general electorate (67%) and support among likely voters in an off-year election (51%). Our 53.2% victory tells me that we did in fact turn some unlikely voters into likely voters, giving us a solid 6% margin of victory. That translates into almost 113,000 votes. I’d say our side has proven that it understands Washington’s political landscape quite well. I’d say that equality is so important to Washingtonians that they will come out to vote when otherwise they may not have.
I’ve said this before, but I think it is worth repeating: The last time Washington voters had the opportunity to ratify a pro-equality law at the polls was in 1997. Initiative to the People 677 proposed an employment non-discrimination law. The ballot title read Shall discrimination based on sexual orientation be prohibited in employment, employment agency, and union membership practices, without requiring employee partner benefits or preferential treatment?.
The measure was rejected 59.7% to 40.3%. Contrary to the current image of the Puget Sound area of Washington as progressive, not one single county – not even Seattle’s home of King County – voted to approve I-677. Contrast that with the current election where the electorate as a whole approved R-71 and majorities in 10 of Washington’s 39 counties have approved R-71. But the truly stunning statistic is that the rate of ballot measure approval increased between 1997 and 2009 in all but one county.
As you consider the graph, realize that in contrast to R-71, I-677 was rather narrow in scope. It dealt only with the employment discrimination of individuals. Voting yes on I-677 didn’t ask voters to contemplate the meaning of family; didn’t ask voters to recognize the existence of gay and lesbian parents; didn’t ask voters to find the fiction in school-focused scare tactics. In other words, not only have Washington voters moved towards equality in virtually every county, they’ve shown by their R-71 vote that they’re open to supporting equality much more comprehensively in the law. This is big.
Thank You Washington!
9 Comments
A needed dose of good newsfollowing on the defeat of marriage equality in NY.
Apparently the go-slow approach is working in Washington State. And it’s worth noting that the only county in the state to move against equality is also the smallest — so maybe the supportive people just moved to friendlier places.
Thanks for some good news
Almost thereWe just need full equality now, right? We have inclusive ENDA and our DOMA is meaningless now, so we just need a simple 20-line bill to pass.
Look for full marriage equality in 2011If the Democrats have another solid victory at the Washington State polls in 2010, it’s very likely they will change the name from domestic partnership to marriage. Though I expect they’ll keep DP as a separate class, as it’s very useful for seniors who are worried about pension and inheritance issues.
Grant CountyOnly 17,482 people voted in R-71 from Grant Co. in this election. They only have about 35,000 registered voters total. And check out Pacific County – only 7,205 people voted from there on R-71. We lost that county by a mere 63 votes!
Pacific County was a big surpriseBut then I checked the census data — second highest senior population in the state after Jefferson County (which incidentally passed R-71). The clause in the domestic partnership “Everything But Marriage” bill that allowed heterosexual couples with one member over age 62 seems to have made a real difference to older voters.
If this ever gets on the ballot again, I hope there is a strong GOTV effort in Pacific County — it would be fantastic to win more of the small rural counties.
Congratulations, Washington State !I remember about 15 years ago standing in a park in Spokane (when I lived there for 4 1/2 years) challenging people who where collecting signatures for the “No Special Rights” petition, who were gathering signatures by actively deceiving people.
This has been a long, bloody battle, and we should look at the people of Washington who have fought hard to make progress, great progress, over a long period.
This is how it’s done.
Slightly off topic…Since domestic partnerships are equivalent to marriage under Washington State laws, can we change our last name, like married couples can?
Pardon my cynicism, but I wouldn’t be surprised if there is no way to do this except by petitioning the courts and paying the fees.
I’d appreciate any suggestions. If I had the money to seek legal advice, I’d do that, but I’m hoping some Blenders can help.
Good questionI just got an email yesterday from someone who was able to change his name on his DP registration for free – something not possible before the new law went into effect. You should contact the Secretary of State’s domestic partnership office and ask. If they don’t have the answers, ask them to recommend the agency that would. Asking questions of government employees is free