Honolulu — Despite a hard fought campaign to defeat the measure, Hawaii voters passed a constitutional amendment Tuesday night that gives the state legislature the power to reserve marriage to opposite sex couples. The amendment was placed on the ballot by the state legislature last year to undermine the historic legal case presently before Hawaii's Supreme Court that could require the state to issue marriage licenses to gay and lesbian couples.

"Deeply-rooted fear and prejudice, fomented by a campaign funded by the Mormon Church and other religious political groups, drove a majority of voters to deny constitutional protection of equal marriage rights to gay and lesbian residents of the state," said David M. Smith, Human Rights Campaign (HRC) communications director who worked with Protect Our Constitution (POC), the local coalition fighting the amendment. "The fact that fear and prejudice triumphed over protections guaranteed by the state constitution should make every American take pause."

"Those that would be gleeful at this outcome should be forewarned. This is not over. While this loss is a setback, we will continue with every ounce of energy, commitment and vigor to achieve our dream of complete equality and that includes full and equal civil marriage rights," Smith said.

The primary group supporting the amendment, Save Traditional Marriage, received a $600,000 contribution from the Mormon Church in the closing weeks of the campaign to supplement the $850,000 they had already spent. They were assisted by two additional television and radio campaigns supporting the amendment. One, sponsored by James Dobson's Focus on the Family was an "educational" campaign immune from reporting requirements that HRC estimates spent $500,000 on television and radio advertisements. Focus on the Family asserted that a yes vote was for "traditional marriage," and a no vote was for "homosexual marriage." The other campaign, sponsored by a group called Pro-Family Hawaii emerged in the last 10 days of the campaign that portrayed same-sex marriage as a threat to Hawaii's tourism industry. Their ads claimed that Hawaii would become the "homosexual honeymoon capitol of the world," and drive heterosexual Japanese and mainland tourists, of which the economy is dependent, from the state. In addition, the national headquarters of the Christian Coalition distributed 200,000 voter guides in churches throughout the state on the Sunday before the election. Combined, HRC estimates well over $2.2 million was spent supporting the amendment's passage.

HRC, working closely with Protect Our Constitution — comprised of local community leaders, clergy, labor unions and civic groups — spent approximately $1.4 million on the effort to defeat the measure which included paid media, an expansive field program and organized "neighbor-to-neighbor" voter persuasion efforts.

POC, lead by Dr. Jackie Young, built an impressive coalition that reached into civic and political circles in spite of heavy pressure from the political establishment in the state to shun the campaign to defeat the amendment. The League of Women Voters, the Japanese American Citizens League, the Hawaii State Teachers Association, 15 other unions including the local chapter of the I.L.W.U. and the Teamsters and more than 50 clergy supported the "no" effort. Both of the state's major newspapers supported the "no" position. The campaign received a setback when the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) first endorsed a "no" vote on the amendment, then abruptly reversed themselves on the endorsement a week before the election after receiving significant pressure from campaigns supporting the amendment.

"While, I am deeply disappointed that we did not prevail, I am very proud of the campaign that we mounted against this discriminatory amendment," said Dr. Young. "The commitment and dedication of the local groups and individuals that have stood with us is both the real story of this campaign and the hope for a future of equal rights for all people of Hawaii."

Other factors that contributed to the loss involved the political climate in the state, which shifted dramatically in favor of more conservative positions this election cycle primarily due to the sour economy in the state. Almost every major candidate running for office endorsed the "yes" position to immunize his or her campaigns against the issue. Both the republican and the democratic incumbent candidates for governor appeared in television and newspaper advertisements urging a "yes" vote. Senator Daniel Inouye, running for re-election but not formidably challenged, indicated in an obscure voter guide he would be voting no, but declined to be more public about his position until the day before the election. All House candidates, including incumbents Rep. Neil Abercrombie and Rep. Patsy Mink endorsed "yes" positions. Abercrombie's republican challenger attacked him vociferously throughout the campaign for receiving contributions from HRC and voting against the federal Defense of Marriage Act.v "Because many incumbent candidates were in strongly contested races, we did not receive support where we would normally find it," said Smith. "Our natural allies were not there."

We are forever grateful to the Human Rights Campaign for helping us defend Hawaii's constitution against an onslaught of prejudice," said Carol Greenhouse, Co-Chair of Marriage Project Hawaii, the local organization responsible for pressing the court case. "While our combined efforts were not successful in defeating the amendment, we take some comfort in knowing with resolute conviction that we will prevail in the end, because our cause is just and right."

The Human Rights Campaign is the nation's largest national lesbian and gay political organization, with members throughout the country. HRC effectively lobbies Congress, provides campaign support, and educates the public to ensure that lesbian and gay Americans can be open, honest, and safe at home, at work, and in the community.