TORONTO, February 4, 2005 (LifeSiteNews.com) – Tony Martin, the NDP MP for Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario has publicly indicated he intends to vote in favour of the Liberals’ same-sex marriage bill that will redefine marriage to include lesbian and gay couples.
However, Enshrine Marriage Canada – a national non-profit organization fighting to have the traditional definition of marriage as the union of one woman and one man enshrined in the Constitution – released the results of a professional public opinion survey it commissioned of voters in the constituency of Sault Ste. Marie that found over 60 per cent of Sault riding residents oppose changing the definition of marriage to include same-sex couples.
The survey was conducted for EMC by the Logit Group of Toronto on 27-28 January 2005.
402 eligible voters selected at random (with a margin of error of +/-4.9 per cent) in the Sault Ste. Marie constituency were asked if they supported changing the definition of marriage. The results found 62.1 per cent of Sault Ste. Marie riding opposed or strongly opposed changing the definition of marriage.
Voters were also asked if their MP should vote based on their views and concerns or based on his own wishes and 78.3 per cent of Sault Ste. Marie and area residents said Tony Martin should listen to them. As well, over 52 per cent said they would be much more likely not to vote for Tony Martin if he did not listen to the people of his riding.
“A huge majority of people in Sault Ste. Marie riding want to maintain the traditional definition of marriage,” said William Gairdner, chairman of Enshrine Marriage Canada (EMC). “Tony Martin, MP, should be listening. The people of this riding do not want him to vote in favour of the federal government’s same-sex marriage bill.”
See related coverage on Tony Martin:
Catholic Sault Ste Marie MP Announces Support for Same Sex Marriage