The anti-Democrat wave that swept the
nation on Tuesday swamped New Hampshire, where a newly elected
Republican veto-proof majority threatens the state's gay marriage
law.
Governor John Lynch, the second
governor to sign a gay marriage law, was among the few Democratic
politicians to escape the political earthquake. The
National Organization for Marriage (NOM), the nation's most
vociferous opponent of gay marriage, targeted Lynch for ouster in a
$425,000 television and radio campaign titled He's Changed.
The ad featured video footage of Lynch saying, “I do not support
gay marriage,” and ends with the tag line, “John Lynch has
changed. But not for the better.”
NOM, which has previously played a
pivotal role in reversing marriage equality laws in Maine and
California, has already begun a gay marriage repeal drumbeat.
“In New Hampshire, we flipped the
state legislature,” Brian Brown, the group's president, says in a
blog post. “And not only flipped it, but it now looks like we have
veto proof majorities in both legislative houses.”
“We will now fight for a vote on a
constitutional amendment and a repeal of same-sex marriage in New
Hampshire. And we look forward to the legislature overriding any
veto that John Lynch might attempt.”
New Hampshire's Democrat-controller
legislature approved the law last year, and
it went into effect on January 1. The state's new Republican
majority will be sworn in on December 1.
Some social conservatives who oppose
the law, however, have warned the party not to make repeal a priority.
“I've cautioned a number of newly
elected officials not to make social issues the number-one priority
because they'll end up doing what the Democratic legislators did,
over-play their hand,” Kevin Smith, president of Cornerstone
Action, told the Union Leader.