ACSBlog: The Blog of the American Constitution Society

Strong opposition to president-elect Barack Obama’s candidacy helped propel an anti-gay ballot measure to victory in Arkansas. The New York Times reported that the Arkansas measure barring unmarried couples from adopting children was “overwhelmingly” approved by voters on Election Day. Jay Barth, a political science professor at Hendrix College in Ark., told the newspaper that white Arkansas Democrats “felt cross-pressured” in the election. “They didn’t want to vote for what they viewed as Bush’s third term, but they also couldn’t bring themselves to vote for Barack Obama.,” he said. Exit polling, however, showed that the adoption ban, which The Times reported was aimed at stopping gay couples from adopting children, was largely supported by evangelicals and backers of Bush.