Two of Maine’s largest newspapers have come out against Question 1–the so-called “people’s veto” initiative that seeks to overturn the recently-passed law granting equal marriage rights to all Maine residents. The Portland Press Herald couches its support in the legal necessity of recognizing all couples:

Although the “Yes on One” campaign says that its opposition is not based on religious objections to homosexual behavior, that’s all that’s left when the other arguments are disposed of. People are entitled to their beliefs, but religious teaching alone shouldn’t be the basis of our law.

The vote “no” campaign makes solid arguments that hold up to scrutiny.

While the courts have become increasingly ready to extend family-law protections to same-sex partners in adoption and child custody cases, parents at the head of these families remain legal strangers to each other, causing problems that range from inconvenient to inhumane.

Maine statutes use the word “spouse” 400 times. They use the word “marital” 600 times. There is virtually no way to surgically carve out and tie together all the rights and responsibilities of marriage in a legal relationship that does what marriage does without calling it marriage.

The Bangor Daily News made its argument from a Civil Rights standpoint:

Everyone must be treated equally under the state and U.S. Constitution. Denying civil marriage rights to same-sex couples violates that tenet.

Further, extending the right of marriage to a small segment of the population that has been excluded furthers the state’s interest in promoting stable families and communities. The Maine legislation also took important steps, mirroring the state’s Human Rights Law, to respect religious freedom and traditions. No church will be compelled to perform or recognize marriages that run counter to its faith. This strikes the difficult balance of respecting religious freedom while ensuring equality.