Box Turtle Bulletin
News and commentary about the anti-gay lobby“Now you must raise your children up in a world where that union of man and box turtle is on the same legal footing as man and wife…”
News and commentary about the anti-gay lobbyNovember 6th, 2012
2:00 EST: One more thing:
Iowa Supreme Court Justice Retention Vote:
David Wiggins:
Yes (retain): 54% √
No: 46%
83% reporting.
NOM is having a very bad night. A historically bad night. I’m going to bed now and I will sleep very, very soundly.
1:39 EST: President Obama is now giving his victory speech. And with that, I’m going to sign off for the night. I will provide an update with the latest results again tomorrow morning.
1:30 EST: Here is a rundown of all of the LGBT-related races I’ve been following:
BALLOT MEASURES:
Maine, Question 1: Allow same-sex marriage.
Yes: 54.2% √
No: 45.8%
58.1% reporting.
Maryland, Question 6: Allow same-sex marriage.
Yes: 51.2% √
No: 48.1%
96.8% reporting.
Minnesota, Amendment 1: Same-sex marriage ban.
No: 49.2.5%
Blanks: 1.5%
Yes: 49.2%
67.4% reporting.
Remember: The Amendment needs to pass by more than half of all ballots cast. Blanks will be added to the “no” vote for the final tally.
Washington, Referendum 74: Allow same-sex marriage.
Yes: 51.8.9%
No: 48.2%
49.9% reporting.
SENATE RACE:
Wisconsin:
Tammy Baldwin (D, openly lesbian): 51.2% √
Tommy Thompson (R): 46.2.%
86.8% reporting.
CONGRESSIONAL RACES:
Arizona:
Kyrsten Sinema (D, openly bi): 47.4%
Vernon Parker (R): 46.3%
86% reporting.
California:
Mark Takano (D, openly gay): 54.4%
John Tavaglione (R): 45.6%
13% reporting.
Colorado:
Jared Polis (D, openly gay): 54.6% √
Kevin Lundberg (R): 40.4%
45.3% reporting.
Massachusetts:
Richard Tisei (R, openly gay): 47.1%
John Tierney (D) 48.4% √
98.3% reporting.
New York:
Sean Patrick Maloney (D, openly gay): 51.7% √
Nan Hayworth (R): 48.3%
96.7% reporting.
Rhode Island:
David Cicilline (D, openly gay): 53.1% √
Brendan Dohert (R): 40.7%
97.0% reporting
Wisconsin:
Mark Pocan (D, openly gay): 67.4% √
Chad Lee (R): 32.6%
90.5% reporting.
12:55 EST: Gov. Mitt Romney is now giving a very classy consession speech, congratulating President Obama for his win.
12:50 EST: Here is a rundown of the ballot measures addressing same-sex marriage. Voters in two states have approved marriage equality. Voters in Washington are on their way to approving marriage equality, and Minnesota voters look poised to turn down a proposal to write a permanent ban on same-sex marriage in the state’s constitution. After voters in 30 states have written marriage equality bans into their state constitutions, we now have a remarkable turnaround in 2012. Remember this day.
Maine, Question 1: Allow same-sex marriage.
Yes: 54% √
No: 46%
51% Reporting
Maryland, Question 6: Allow same-sex marriage.
Yes: 52% √
No: 48%
93% Reporting
Minnesota, Amendment 1: Same-sex marriage ban.
No: 48.5%
Blanks: 3.7%
Yes: 47.9%
53% reporting.
Remember: The Amendment needs to pass by more than half of all ballots cast. Blanks will be added to the “no” vote for the final tally.
Washington, Referendum 74: Allow same-sex marriage.
Yes: 52%
No: 48%
50% reporting.
12:40 EST: Tammy Baldwin has now given her victory speech. With 79% reporting, she has defeated Gov. Tommy Thompson 51-47%, making her the first openly gay Senator in American history.
12:38 EST: Now I’m ready to call Maryland’s Question 6 a win for equality! With 92% reporting, Question 6 has passed 1,126,598 to 1,050,179 (52-48%) Maryland voters have joined those in Maine to approve marriage equality at the ballot box. I don’t know about you, but this really feels like a truly historic turning point.
12:30 EST: Colorado has now gone to Obama, bringing his lead to 290-201. There’s a lot of talk about whether Ohio was prematurely declared, but even if Ohio went red, this would still be Obama’s victory. An ugly one, especially if he doesn’t win the popular vote, but it is a win.
12:28 EST: Another gay congressman is headed to Washington. Sean Patrick Maloney (D) has defeated Rep. Nan Hayworth (R), 52%-48%.
12:15 EST: Believe it or not, Politico has had the results swapped between Question 6 and the “Illegal immigrant tuition” question all night long. For the love of god!!! Question 6 is up, but only 52-48%, way too early to call.
12:00 EST: With 44.1% reporting in Maine, Question 1 is projected to win!
Maine, Question 1: Allow same-sex marriage.
Yes: 54.4%
No: 45.6%
44.1% Reporting
11:45 EST: With 81% reporting in Maryland, Question 6 is projected to win!
Maryland, Question 6: Allow same-sex marriage.
Yes: 58%
No: 42%
81% Reporting
11:31 EST: Remember James Hartline?
I took my Bible with me today and proudly honored God with my decisions. I refused to vote for the demonized Mormon Cultist Mitt Romney or Obama. Instead, like nearly two million other voters, I marked other and wrote in Jesus.
11:30 EST: Has Tammy Baldwin won her Senate race? Reuters called it, but right now with 53% reporting, she is only up 49-48%. She may yet win, but it looks like a lot of folks might have jumped the gun a bit.
11:23 EST: CNN has given Ohio to Obama. President Barack Obama, the most pro-gay president in American history, has been re-elected.
11:05 EST: A slew of new projections has put Obama on top 243-191. Ohio continues to lean toward Romney, but CNN is now mapping out multiple possibilities for Obama to win even without Ohio.
Here are the state marriage ballot measures. All of them are still looking good so far.
Maine, Question 1: Allow same-sex marriage.
Yes: 53%
No: 47%
30% Reporting
Maryland, Question 6: Allow same-sex marriage.
Yes: 58%
No: 42%
55% Reporting
Minnesota: Amendment 1: Same-sex marriage ban.
No: 52%
Blanks: 3.8%
Yes: 45%
19% Reporting
Remember: The Amendment needs to pass by more than half of all ballots cast. Blanks will be added to the “no” vote for the final tally.
10:55 EST: Obama is now tied with Romney, 172-172. Ohio is leaning toward Obama, and FLorida and Virginia are very nearly tied so far. It’s going to be a long night.
10:35 EST: Great news so far in the three states with marriage on the ballot that are reporting:
Maine, Question 1: Allow same-sex marriage.
Yes: 55%
No: 45%
16% Reporting
Maryland, Question 6: Allow same-sex marriage.
Yes: 60%
No: 40%
41% Reporting
Minnesota: Amendment 1: Same-sex marriage ban.
No: 57%
Blanks: 1.5%
Yes: 42%
7% Reporting
Remember: The Amendment needs to pass by more than half of all ballots cast. Blanks will be added to the “no” vote for the final tally.
10:25 EST. In Rhode Island, it looks like openly gay Rep. David Cicilline has defeated Republican challenger Brendan Doherty. With 82% reporting, Cicilline is ahead 50-44%.
In Massachusetts, Richard Tisei is trailing in his question to become the first openly gay Republican congressman. Rep. John Tierney is leading 49-47% with 58% reporting.
10:15 EST: We can celebrate Tammy Baldwin’s win now. Fox News is projecting that she will be the new fabulously openly lesbian Senator from Wisconsin. History is made!
Question 1 in Maine is now tightening. With 11% reporting, it is now up 53-47%.
10:00 EST: Mitt Romney has won his home state of Utah. But he lost New Hampshire
With 7% reporting, Question 1 is passing in Maine, 55-45%.
With 23% reporting, Question 6 is passing in Maryland, 61-39%.
With only 3% reporting, Amendment 1 is trailing in Minnesota. 61-38%, with about 1.5% of the ballots blank for the proposed amendment. Blank ballots are will be counted as no votes.
9:45 EST: CNN Projects Elizabeth Warren (D) has unseated Scott Brown (R) in Massachusetts, and JOe Donnelly (D) has defeated Richard Mourdock (R) in Indiana. God’s will, you know. These are both pick-ups for Dems.
9:42 EST: NBC and Fox have given Wisconsin to Obama. CNN has finally given Pennsylvania to Obama also.
9:35 EST: The Associated Press has declared Rep. Tammy Baldwin (D) the winner in her Senate race against former Gov. Tommy Thompson (R), making Baldwin the first openly gay Senator in U.S. history. Oops, take that back. The AP has NOT called for Baldwin.
9:20 EST: Fox called Pennsylvania for Obama. I’ll take it.
9:15 EST: Vote counts for Maryland’s Question 6 and Maine’s Question 1 are excruciatingly slow. With 3% counted in Maine, Question 1 is trailing 4,253-5,362. In Maryland, Question 6 is passing 192,860-157,767 with only 1% of the vote counted. Obviously with vote tallies this low, it’s way to early to see any trends.
9:00 EST: Polls close in Arizona, Colorado, Louisiana, Minnesota, New Mexico, New York, Wisconsin, Wyoming. Last polls close in Kansas, Michigan, Nebraska, South Dakota, and Texas. And with it, a whole slew of new projecitons, mostly lining up with expectations. So far, it looks like the red states are going heavily red, while the blue states are slower to come in. Right now, Romney is up 152-123.
CNN says that the Republicans will hold on to the House. Obama is getting a lot of grief for not campaigning in key House races on behalf of Democratic candidates.
8:50 EST: Alabama is red. Romney is up 82-64.
People are still in line in Florida and Virginia, even as polls have officially closed. Those who are in line will get to vote. Twitter hashtag #stayinline is now trending upward. It sure would have been nice if someone had mentioned to Florida and Virginia election officials that they were supposed to be ready for an election today.
8:30 EST: Polls just closed in Arkansas, which CNN has called for Romney. CNN has also called Tennessee as well, putting Romney ahead 73-64.
So far, only about 1% of the results are in for Maryland’s Question 6 and Maine’s Question 1, which means that there aren’t enough results to talk about yet.
8:25 EST: In the Senate races, it looks like the Angus King, the independent candidate for Maine’s Senator to replace Sen. Olympia Snowe (R) is headed to Washington. He hasn’t said which party he will caucus with, but most observers expect that he will caucus with the Dems. Another possible pickup for the Dems might be Joe Donnelly, who is leading Richard Mourdock by 50-44% with 30% of the votes counted. Mourdock, you may recall, got in trouble during the debate when he said that when a child is born as a result of rape, it’s God’s will.
8:16 EST: Georgia now goes to Romney, bringing the EC count to 64-56 for Obama.
8:00 EST: Polls have now closed in Alabama, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Tennessee.
CNN has called a Delaware, DC, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts and Rhode Island for Obama, and Oklahoma for Romney. This puts Obama up 64-40 in the Electoral College, with Maine splitting its vote 3-1 for Obama. (Nebraska is the only other state that is not winner-take-all in the Electoral College.)
Virginia officially closed but:
Polls closed in Virginia at 7 p.m. ET, but with long lines at polling places around the state — and those in line still able to vote — the state is delaying counting votes so as not to unduly influence those still waiting in line. Smart move.
7:43 EST: CNN has now called South Carolina and West Virginia for Romney. Not much of a surprise. It’s now Romney, 33-3 in the electoral count.
Polls close in Maryland and Maine at 8:00. Hopefully we’ll start to get an early look at the marriage ballot measures in those states soon after.
7:30 EST: Polls have now closed in North Carolina, Ohio, and West Virginia. CNN’s exit poll has Obama up by 3 in Ohio and tied in North Carolina.
7:19 EST: CNN has called Kentucky for Romney, and Vermont for Obama, which means that Romney leads the electoral college count 8-3. And we’re off!
7:00 EST: Polls have closed in Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, South Carolina, Vermont, and Virginia. First results will probably begin within the half hour. Here are the races I’ll be watching, in addition to the presidential election and any others you think I should keep an eye out for.
Consider the comments thread for this post an open thread, which I’ll be watching for whatever tips you have. And jokes. We may need some jokes. Or videos of cute kittens. Whatever you got. You can also email them by hitting the Contact Us link on the sidebar.
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John
November 6th, 2012
Minnesota exit polls showed that 54% of men voted yes and 57% of women voted no, with 51% of all voters being women, which is a very good sign, as it means it should fail with around 52% of people voting no, and that’s not counting people who skip it. Weren’t the California exit polls on prop 8 pretty accurate? I’m cautiously optimistic about it, although still unsure…
John
November 6th, 2012
That’s a really bad run-on sentence. In my defense this is like the most nervous I’ve been in my life.
Jim Burroway
November 6th, 2012
I’m nervous too!
Ryan
November 6th, 2012
I don’t think it’s gonna be that long of a night. Time’s about up for Romney.
gcarey
November 6th, 2012
well done obama!
John
November 6th, 2012
Maryland marriage has been called! We won!
John
November 6th, 2012
Actually that’s what politico says, but cnn still shows it as close. I wonder why there’s a discrepancy.
Hyhybt
November 6th, 2012
I’m amazed to see Hawaii closes its polls so early. As for marriage… remembering that early returns looked good on Prop 8, but got worse as the night wore on…
John
November 6th, 2012
I remember early returns for prop 8 showing 54% yes, and it slowly lowered to 52.5% before the night was over. Definitely don’t remember it losing at any point.
Ryan
November 7th, 2012
I’m confused why CNN isn’t calling Maryland.
Ryan
November 7th, 2012
MSNBC is calling Question 6 for us.
gcarey
November 7th, 2012
nevada should be blue.
Jim Burroway
November 7th, 2012
Nevada is fixed now.
Ryan
November 7th, 2012
I’m stunned Romney’s crowd applauded Obama and his family. Four years ago McCain had to stop them from booing. Maybe they’re learning a bit.
John
November 7th, 2012
Minnesota is really close, but I want to point out that EVERY SINGLE COUNTY that has been completely tallied has voted yes so far, and every county that has voted no still has more ballets to count. And Olmstead County, which should vote no (I think) hasn’t even started yet, for some reason.
John
November 7th, 2012
Also, I just found out that Minneapolis hasn’t reported any results yet because they’re waiting until they count all of the absentee ballots. Another good sign, since Minneapolis is by far the most liberal part of Minnesota.
Ed Walker
November 7th, 2012
AP calls MN amendent race for the “no’s”.
http://live.mprnews.org/Event/Election_2012_The_MPR_News_live_blog
Lord_Byron
November 7th, 2012
It’s great news and I am also happy to see that WA’s Initiative 502 and Colorado’s Amendment 64 passed.
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