File Photo Tireless battlers for marriage equality are promising to make it a key issue at next month’s Australian election. A Federal Election has been called for September 7, with pro-equality incumbent Kevin Rudd hoping to overcome conservative opposition leader Tony Abbott. Australian Marriage Equality National Director Rodney Croome says more Australians than ever passionately want their nation to achieve marriage equality and will be taking that aspiration into the ballot box. "In the lead up to the election we will be reaching out to millions of Australians voters through direct mail, social and conventional media, and community events to remind them which candidates support marriage equality and which don't." Croome believes marriage equality will not be achieved by any one party, but by a cross-party conscience vote. “We are encouraging voters to cast their ballots for individual candidates who support reform, regardless of their party." A poll by Galaxy research found marriage equality could be an election-deciding issue with a net 11 per cent of Coalition voters saying they are more likely to vote Labor because of Kevin Rudd's support for the issue while 57 per cent of voters including 37 per cent of Coalition voters said Tony Abbott is out-of-step with community attitudes. "Recent federal and state marriage equality inquiries have received a far larger response in favour of reform than any other inquiries in Australians history,” Croome says. "This alone should tell election candidates that support for marriage equality is a vote winner."
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Wednesday, 7th August 2013 - 8:56am