LGBT Voters Weighing Kerry

Daley laid out the Massachusetts senator's long track record of support on gay civil right issues for the Southern Voice recently, a record he says that dates back to 1985 "long before it was fashionable" and still quite risky to back gay and lesbian civil rights. "This isn't just a guy talking about it, he was doing it before anyone else told him to do it," said Daley, 37. Daley joined Kerry's campaign on the recommendation of good gay friend Bob Farmer, who serves as the Kerry campaign's national treasurer.

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Specifically, Kerry has endorsed civil unions or domestic partnerships as an alternative. Asked about Kerry's response to his home state's high court ruling that many say will legalize gay marriage in Massachusetts, Daley told the Voice Kerry is, "right there with it." The main challenge for Daley is to convince so many disaffected LGBT supporters of Dean that they have a home with Kerry. We're up against a strong voice" in Dean, he said, but "Kerry has that, too."

"We are not going to be another issue on the platform. That was important to me. I did not want to get involved in a campaign for the sake of it," Daley said. Kerry was the original co-sponsor of the hate crimes bill and in 1985 introduced a bill banning bias on the basis of sexual orientation. He has been a vocal supporter ENDA (the Employment Non-Discrimination Act), has called for an end to "don't ask, don't tell, don't pursue" and was one of just 14 senators (significantly, the only one up for reelection that year) to oppose the Defense of Marriage Act.

That kind of record is gaining Kerry an increasingly loyal following of community activists. "I didn't pay much attention to him at first," one Oklahoma volunteer wrote the DataLounge, "but there isn't a candidate in this campaign who's put more on the line for this community."

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Specifically, Kerry has endorsed civil unions or domestic partnerships as an alternative. Asked about Kerry's response to his home state's high court ruling that many say will legalize gay marriage in Massachusetts, Daley told the Voice Kerry is, "right there with it." The main challenge for Daley is to convince so many disaffected LGBT supporters of Dean that they have a home with Kerry. We're up against a strong voice" in Dean, he said, but "Kerry has that, too."
http://www.datalounge.com/datalounge/news/record.html?record=21186