New York State Senator Greg Ball on
Friday officially declared himself opposed to a gay marriage bill.
Ball had previously declared himself
undecided, and called for greater exemptions for religious
organizations.
“Knowing that marriage equality was
likely to pass, I thought it important to force the issue of
religious protections. Over the past few weeks, I've had the
distinct opportunity of listening to literally thousands of
residents, on both sides of this issue, by holding an undecided
stance. I thought it was important to listen to all of my
constituents and hold an undecided position until the actual bill
language was written and everyone's voice had been heard. Now that
the final text is public, I am proud that I have secured some strong
protections for religious institutions and basic protections for
religious organizations. The bill still lacks many of the basic
religious protections I thought were vital, and for this reason, and
as I did in the Assembly, I will be voting 'no,'” Ball said in a
statement.
According
to Politicker NY, Ball's spokesman said the senator wanted
language that would protect the religious freedoms of individuals as
well as organizations.
Last week, Ball turned to his Twitter
followers and Facebook friends for advice on the measure: “Opening
up the discussion! So, if you were me, how would you vote on gay
marriage? Yes or No?”
Ball told New York Observer's
Azi Paybarah that response on Twitter was overwhelmingly in favor of
the marriage bill. Facebook users were nearly evenly divided, Ball
told POLITICO. (Though it should be noted that several gay marriage
supporters allege Ball deleted their comments and blocked them from
his Facebook page. And Ball has been accused of feigning uncertainty
on the issue for political gain.)