Thirty-two times.
That's how often voters across the country had rejected measures to legalize same-sex marriage when the issue was put before them. Losing had become so routine that many gay activists couldn't believe polls predicting success Tuesday in Maryland, Maine and Washington state.
But voters approved ballot measures in all three states, and rejected a proposed amendment to Minnesota's Constitution that would have forbidden same-sex marriage.
Combined with the victory in Wisconsin of Tammy Baldwin, the first openly gay U.S. senator-elect in the nation, and voters sending a record six lesbian and gay members to the House, Tuesday was one of the most important political days ever for the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community.
"Not only did we turn a corner, but we headed down the highway at breakneck speed," said Kate Kendell, executive director of the National Center for Lesbian Rights in San Francisco. "We didn't just pick off one or two races. We ran the table, and showed people that America is changing its attitude."
Among those elected Tuesday was Mark Takano, an Asian American Democrat who will represent California's 41st Congressional District in Riverside. Arizona Democrat Kyrsten Sinema, who would be the first openly bisexual member of Congress, could join them, depending on a late vote count.
Tuesday's election may have an additional impact - in the courts and on future ballot measures. Supporters of same-sex marriage hope the results will inspire the U.S. Supreme Court to decide favorably on gay rights issues that could come before it - including enabling gay couples to marry in California.
New energy
The wins this week are expected to energize legislative attempts to legalize same-sex marriage by early next year in Rhode Island, Delaware and possibly Illinois. Backers of same-sex marriage in Oregon, who considered a measure for this fall's ballot before backing out, may reconsider their plan next year.
Kendell and others said they believe that Tuesday's ballot box outcomes will have a ripple effect on the nation's high court.
Sometime in the next month, the court is scheduled to decide whether to hear the case involving California's voter-approved Proposition 8, which banned same-sex marriage in 2008, and the federal Defense of Marriage Act, the 1996 law that barred federal marital benefits such as joint tax filing, Social Security survivors' payments and immigration sponsorship to same-sex spouses.
Federal appeals courts have found both laws to be unconstitutional acts of discrimination.
"The court doesn't like to get too far in front of the public on issues like this," said Marc Solomon, the national campaign director for Freedom to Marry, an organization that contributed $4.6 million to marriage campaigns on Tuesday's ballots.
Support grows
At the same time, public polling shows support for same-sex marriage increasing - particularly among Americans younger than 30, Solomon said, adding, "This is where the country is headed."
If the court hears the case and rules against same-sex marriage, its decision will come by June, providing supporters of such unions ample time to get a measure on the ballot in California next fall. Such a plan would involve raising at least $50 million for a campaign.
Frank Schubert, a Sacramento political consultant and architect of the Prop. 8 campaign, and on the losing side of the four measures on Tuesday's ballots, said public opinion about same-sex marriage has not shifted significantly.
Schubert said his forces were outspent in the campaigns leading to Tuesday's election. In Washington, backers of same-sex marriage received millions in donations from luminaries including Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates and Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos.
"I'm disappointed," Schubert said. He said opponents of the ballot measures did not have the resources to compete because the measures were in liberal states and in the middle of a presidential election.
"I learned that we have to do a much better job at raising money," said Schubert, who is the national political director for the National Organization for Marriage, which poured $5.5 million into Tuesday's ballot battles.
The sting of Tuesday's losses may not linger long. Schubert said he "would be shocked if the court doesn't look at the Prop. 8 case."
Kendell and others said President Obama's decision in May to publicly support same-sex marriage was "the accelerant" that helped ignite Tuesday's victories.
Voters responded enthusiastically, said Amy Simon, an Oakland pollster who worked on the victorious campaigns in Washington and Maine.
"We were up in every category - men, women, Catholics, African Americans," she added. "This is a huge moment of change, because people are realizing that there is a shared humanity here with this issue."
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