If we do not have a strong voter turn out for the 2009 election in Washington, the domestic partnership law may not survive. 77% of the electorate may support treating all families equally under the law, but if history repeats itself than we have no one to blame but ourselves for not protecting ALL Washington families. The solution is simple. We must vote, register to vote, register our friends to vote, and verify our voter registration is up to date with the Washington Secretary of State. When you receive your ballot in the mail, do not procrastinate. Vote early. Expect ballots to arrive on or around October 14. Ballots are due November 3. Approve Referendum 71.

With only 4 days remaining for opponents of equality to secure over 120,000 signatures to place referendum 71 on the ballot, thousands of Washington families are held in suspense.  At risk are hundreds of domestic partnership rights that married heterosexual couples already enjoy, including survivor benefits for police officers and firefighters killed in the line of duty. Join the Impact volunteers produced this video to introduce you to some of those families.

Please share it widely. By our opponent’s own admission this is going to be a close call.  Every person we reach in the next four days is vital to protecting equality.

The Advocate.com just released a report that opponents to LGBT equality in Washington are approaching nearly 100,000 signatures towards their goal of 125,000 to place referendum 71 on the November ballot.  They also boast they have 1000 volunteers helping them get the last 25,000 signatures during the final week of signature gathering.  Petitions are due July 25, 2009.

“If they come back in at the rate they’ve gone out, we’re going to get this thing,” he said on Thursday.

When asked whether signature authenticity may be a problem with so many volunteers, Stickney said he is not too worried with that process.

“[The secretary of state's office] will take a sampling, and make that determination,” he said. “Usually when you’re dealing with churchgoing folks, as we have in times past — the last time I headed an initiative, we had the highest percentage of validated signatures up to that point — we expect it to be pretty good.”

Washington Families Standing Together is mounting their final week push to prevent their attempt to repeal the domestic partnership expansion law of 2009.  Volunteers are canvasing throughout the state and festivals and events.  They ask their supporters to simply decline to sign petitions that say at the top, “Preserve Marriage, Protect Children.”

If the anti equality movement is successful voters will have to vote to approve referendum 71 to protect domestic partnerships.