Last night the Ward 1 Democrats voted to support a resolution calling for marriage equality in the District by a wide margin of 137-4. Later this morning, the DC Board of Elections and Ethics will be considering whether or not the recent law passed recognizing same-sex marriages performed in other states is a proper subject for a referendum. At issue will be whether or not the referendum would violate DC's Human Rights Act, which prohibits discrimination against people because of sexual orientation. I'll be down there, so more on that later.
The request for a referendum was filed by culture war veteran Bishop Harry Jackson under the auspices of his recently formed group, Stand 4 Marriage DC. Jackson's church is located in Greenbelt, Maryland. According to voter registration records obtained by the Washington Blade, Jackson became registered to vote in the District in late April--about a month before he filed the request for a referendum.
-- A. Serwer
