NOM BLOG

NYTimes: NOM Invests $75K to Defeat Pro-SSM Weprin

 

UPDATE - read our official press release here.

Thomas Kaplan at the New York Times City Room blog got the scoop:

After the New York State Legislature voted in June to allow gay couples to wed, opposition groups vowed that they would make trouble for lawmakers who supported the marriage bill the next time they had to face the voters.

On Wednesday, the National Organization for Marriage said it would spend $75,000 to help defeat Assemblyman David I. Weprin, the Democratic candidate in the special election to replace former Representative Anthony D. Weiner.

... Brian S. Brown, the president of the National Organization for Marriage, said in a telephone interview that the group planned to spend more money, about $30,000, on automated phone calls, additional mailings and get-out-the-vote efforts before the election, scheduled for Tuesday.

“David Weprin made a terrible mistake when he voted for same-sex marriage,” Mr. Brown said, “and I think his community is going to hold him accountable.”

... according to campaign finance filings, and the group’s [NOM's] $45,000 outlay is the largest so-called independent expenditure in the race to date.

In recent weeks, Mr. Weprin has faced unease among some Orthodox Jews in the district who are uncomfortable with his vote on same-sex marriage. On Wednesday, Assemblyman Dov Hikind, a leader in the Orthodox community and a Democrat, endorsed Mr. Turner; last month, Mr. Hikind cited Mr. Weprin’s support of same-sex marriage when he ruled out supporting him in the special election.

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