I-1192 won’t see vote; R-74 receives boost

Same-sex marriage supporters in Washington got a double dose of good news Monday.

First, backers of Initiative 1192 – defining marriage as between “one man and one woman” – admitted they have fallen short of signatures and won’t qualify the initiative for the November ballot. The failure clears the field for Referendum 74 to be the lone measure addressing same-sex marriage in the Nov. 6 general election.

The second development: Two major Microsoft figures – Bill Gates and Steve Ballmer – made major contributions to the R-74 campaign, each giving $100,000. The $200,000 boost adds to the $1.5 million that the Washington United for Marriage campaign had already collected to ratify the same-sex marriage law approved by the Legislature earlier this year.

Preserve Marriage Washington, which wants voters to reject R-74, has reported raising $130,363. But Zach Silk of the pro-R-74 side said supporters of same-sex marriage expect opponents to spend $5 million to $7 million, based on what Preserve Marriage’s key ally, the National Organization for Marriage, spent in other states opposing same-sex marriage.

“We have to put ourselves in a position to compete with that. We know we need to raise it locally … and obviously the support of significant people like Bill Gates and Steve Ballmer helps,’’ Silk said.

Having I-1192 out of the picture also helps by simplifying the message same-sex marriage backers will use to reach voters, Silk said.

I-1192 sponsor Stephen Pidgeon of Everett said Monday that his campaign was running far short of the 241,153 valid voter signatures needed before Friday’s 5 p.m. deadline.

“I hate to say it … but we’re just not going to cross the threshold. We’re not going to make it. This measure is not going to be on the ballot,” Pidgeon said, estimating the I-1192 campaign would be lucky to get 100,000 signatures.

Pidgeon said his team of volunteers had 98,539 signatures and was frustrated along the way by its rivalry with the group collecting signatures to put R-74 on the ballot. The failure of I-1192 leaves two initiatives in position to make the November ballot, provided supporters make Friday’s deadline for signatures – Tim Eyman’s latest two-thirds vote requirement for tax increases and the charter-schools proposal backed by $1 million from Gates.

Each must furnish 241,153 valid voter signatures. State elections officials typically recommend at least 320,000 signatures as a cushion against invalid signatures.