Bev and Peter Mortlock The outspoken and passionately anti-gay head of an Auckland-based evangelical Christian church has been sprung urging his followers to rig a cabinet minister's website poll on marriage Equality. Peter Mortlock of the City Impact Church emailed his flock asking them to vote multiple times on Foreign Affairs and Sport minister Murray McCully's website poll which asks "Do you support or oppose the proposed legislation that would make it possible for same-sex couples to marry?" "Since we are able to vote as many times as we like I'd encourage you to place your votes and keep checking back," Mortlock said to his followers in an email. Mortlock and his fellow Impact pastor Paul Adams claimed in 2004 that they were fasting over a three-week period to cause their God to strike down the Civil Unions bill. The bill soon passed into law allowing legal recognition of same-sex relationships on almost the same basis as marriage. GayNZ.com understands that McCully's ministerial staff quickly spotted the attempt to skew his poll and have taken steps to delete multiple votes. For the record, as of this evening the poll shows 64% of respondents in favour of the Marriage Equality bill, which passed its first reading and which is aimed at complete equality for same-sex couples. 36% of the votes cast oppose it. McCully's website does not indicate how many votes have been counted.
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Wednesday, 16th January 2013 - 8:54pm