A segment on Thursday’s episode of the Daily Show entitled, “Gary & Gary Unmarried,” featured a story on how three states banned gay marriage as part of the election ballot on November 4th.
The three states – California, Arizona, and Florida – were the only ones with ballots that included the bans compared with eight in 2006 and 11 in 2004 according to an article by Randal Archibold and Abby Goodnough of the New York Times.
Its success in California, however, came as a surprise to many who consider the state as “a trend-setter in so many arenas,” according to the article. And was seen as a “major defeat for gay rights activists.”
With all precincts in California reporting, the Associated Press said that the ban – known as Proposition 8 – passed by about 52 percent of the vote.
A record amount of money – $73 million – was spent on this ballot measure making it the most costly race for a social issue proposition ever.
Advocates of the ban on gay marriage ran a series of ads that claimed that if the proposition was not passed then children could be taught about gay marriage in schools.
Opponents of the ban also ran a series of ads that claimed that banning gay marriage was the equivalent of denying homosexuals their fundamental civil rights.
The ban comes only six months after the California Suprem Court ruled that same-sex couples have a constitutional right to marry.
