November 9, 2011
Town Clerk in NY Same-Sex Marriage Flap Re-Elected
Kilian Melloy READ TIME: 1 MIN.
A town clerk in upstate New York's Finger Lakes region who refuses to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples because of her religious beliefs has won her re-election race.
Longtime Ledyard town clerk Rose Marie Belforti defeated Ed Easter, a write-in candidate who said he ran because Belforti's stance on licenses was wrong.
New York became the sixth and largest state to sanction gay marriage this summer. Belforti said her Christian beliefs preclude her from issuing licenses to same-sex couples. Her solution was to have her office issue all marriage licenses by appointment so a deputy can handle them.
Belforti had 305 votes to Easter's 186.
Belforti's plan was criticized by some in the town, and a lawsuit from a lesbian couple denied a license was being considered.
Kilian Melloy serves as EDGE Media Network's Associate Arts Editor and Staff Contributor. His professional memberships include the National Lesbian & Gay Journalists Association, the Boston Online Film Critics Association, The Gay and Lesbian Entertainment Critics Association, and the Boston Theater Critics Association's Elliot Norton Awards Committee.
