Monfils Beats Federer in 3-set Thriller

I'm on a plane to Washington DC but have just been informed that Frenchman Gael Monfils saved 5 match points to beat World #2 Roger Federer in three tiebreak sets to return to the finals of the Paris Indoor ATP Masters.

Monfils will face Swede Robin Soderling in the final

Sent from my iPhone 3G!

SD-28: Ted Lieu Announces Run For Oropeza's Seat

Assemblymember Ted Lieu has announced his plans to run for the late Jenny Oropeza's State Senate seat in the 28th District. Sadly, Oropeza died on October 22, but was re-elected posthumously in the statewide general election on Tuesday November 1st.

Lieu currently represents the 53rd Assembly district, but will lose his seat on December 6th when Betsy Butler is sworn in to represent the South Bay-area district because Lieu decided to run for Attorney General this Spring since he was forced to leave the Assembly due to term limits. He lost in the Democratic primary in June 2010 to Kamala Harris, who is still in a too-close-to-call race with Republican Steve Cooley to be California's next Attorney General.

Another person who lost in the June 2010 Democratic primary, this time in the Lieutenant Governor's race (to Gavin Newsom) was Janice Hahn, who announced today that she would not run in the special election and endorsed Lieu. Another perso who may announce  a bid for the seat is Warren Furutani who represents the 55th Assembly district which covers part of the 24th Senate District. Furutani was able to win the 55th Assembly district when Laura Richardson gave it up to run against Oropeza in an August 2007 special election when Congresswoman Janice Millender-McDonald's 37th Congressional district opened up due to her untimely death. Richardson won that race and now represents CA-37.

Of course all these district lines will become open seats in the next election in 2012 when the lines are redrawn, thanks to Proposition 11 and Proposition 20 by an independent "citizen's" redistricting commission with data from the 2010 Census.

Paris Masters: Federer v. Monfils, Soderling v. Llodra in Semifinals

Gael Monfils

Michael Llodra

It's the indoor hard-court ATP Masters tournament in the Bercy section of Paris and the French players Michael Llodra and Gael Monfils are playing some of their best tennis of the year. Monfils almost always does well before a French crowd, and lost in the finals of this tournament to Novak Djokovic last year in a 3-set thriller. This year he has already saved two match points against World Top 10 stalwart Fernando Verdasco and today beat World #4 Andy Murray 6-2 2-6 6-3 to reach the semifinals and face World #2 Roger Federer who is playing in his first semifinals at the Paris Masters.

In the other half of the draw is the amazing left-handed serve and volleyer Llodra who has been more well-known as a doubles player but who took out defending champion Djokovic in straight sets 7-6 6-2 and today defeated World #11 Nikolay Davydenko 7-5 6-1 to face World #5 Robin Soderling in the semifinals.

Could there be an all-French final on Sunday? Doubtful. I predict a Federer-Soderling final, with Federer winning his first Paris Masters title, and his 18th career Masters title overall.

The year's last ATP Tournament, the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals, begin with the Top 8 players on Sunday November 21st in London where Rafael Nadal, Federer, Djokovic, Murray, Soderling, Tomas Berdych, David Ferrer and Andy Roddick have all qualified for the most prestigious and lucrative non-major tournament of the year.

Celebrity Friday: Roderick Ireland

MA Gov. Deval Patrick (left) with Chief Justice-designate Roderick L. Ireland

Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick, the only Black governor in the country, has nominated Roderick Ireland to be the first Black Chief Justice of the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts. Patrick was re-elected to a second final term as Governor on Tuesday November 3rd, and announced the nomination of Ireland to replace retiring Chief Justice Margaret Marshall. Marshall is well-known for writing the 4-3 majority opinion in Goodridge v. Department of Public Health which ended the state's prohibition on same-sex couples from marrying, the first state Supreme Court to do so in the United States in 2003.

Ireland voted with the majority and Patrick is also a strong supporter of marriage equality and LGBT rights. His teenaged daughter came out as a lesbian while he was governor and he marched with her in a gay rights parade.

Nine Utah Cities and Counties Now Ban Anti-LGBT Bias

There is progress to report on ending discrimination based on sexual orientation and/or gender identity in the state of Utah. Recently, the city councils of Moab, UT and Murray, UT unanimously have enacted local ordinances prohibiting discrimination in housing or employment against LGBT people.

The Salt Lake Tribune reports:

There are now nine cities and counties in Utah with such ordinances. Equality Utah hopes the number will reach 10 before the start of the next session of the Utah Legislature, where the group has pushed for a statewide anti-discrimination law.

In addition to Moab and Murray, Salt Lake City, Salt Lake County, Park City, Summit County, Logan, West Valley City and Taylorsville ban housing and employment discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity.

This means that Equality Utah is just one city away from having reached its goal of having 10 local jurisdictions enact "gay rights laws" before the Utah legislature convenes again and considers a similar statewide measure.

Of course these piecemeal efforts would not be necessary if the 111th United States Congress has passed the Employment Non-Discrimination Act--although even then that legislation would just ban employment discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression and not address discriminations in housing, public accommodations, credit, education and government services. All of these are areas which are protected under California state law, for example.

There is almost no chance that under Republican control the 112th Congress will pass ENDA, or frankly any LGBT-supportive legislation.

Hat/tip to Trans Griot.

Eddie Long Files Court Papers Denying Sexual Allegations

Eddie Long has formally filed legal paperwork denying the claims of four young Black men that he had sex with them while they were 18 or younger and under his care as part of his youth ministry.

The Church that the founded, the New Birth Missionary Baptist Church also filed paperwork denying the charges.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports:

On Monday [November 1], Long filed four separate responses, each about 30 pages and denying each accusation point by point. He admitted that he took the men on trips, but he denied the complaints of sexual contact. He did admit to hugging some of the men.

"Bishop Long admits that it is common among his church congregation for members to hug each other and hug the Bishop," the suit reads.

Long also admitted to giving the plaintiffs gifts, including cars, and helping them financially, but he denied that it was in exchange for sex. He said he has "provided sporadic financial assistance," and he routinely pays for rent and other expenses for New Birth members, according to the filings.

In the filings, Long also admitted to speaking on the phone with the men, but said he could not recall who initiated the calls. He also admitted that the men called him "Daddy," "Bishop" and "Granddaddy," but said many members of his congregation called him similar names.

"Bishop Long admits that he mentors many young men from challenged backgrounds who have often been without the benefit of a male role model," according to his filings.

In his filings, Long said he is a "bold revolutionary spiritual leader," and Long has built a ministry that places "special emphasis on outreach to men, reinforcing to men the importance of partnering with a ministry that will grow them spiritually."

Hmmm, I do believe perjury is a crime and bearing false witness is a sin, right? Does Eddie Long know that?

Last Night's Glee Highlight: "Teenage Dream"

Kurt gets to see what an entire school of well-adjusted, cute gay boys who love to sing would look like in the November 9 episode of Fox's Glee.

GLAD, ACLU File Lawsuits Challenging DOMA

Suzanne & Geraldine Ardis are married and
raising three boys in Clinton, CT.

Interesting news on the civil rights front. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders (GLAD) arefiling lawsuits today challenging the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) on behalf of same-sex married couples from New Hampshire, Vermont, Connecticut and New York.

The New York Times reports in ("Gay Couples To Sue U.S. Over Marriage Law"):

The two new lawsuits, which involve plaintiffs from New York, Connecticut, Vermont and New Hampshire, expand the attack geographically and also encompass more of the 1,138 federal laws and regulations that the Defense of Marriage Act potentially affects — including the insurance costs amounting to several hundred dollars a month in the case of Ms. Pedersen and Ms. Meitzen, and a $350,0000 estate tax payment in the A.C.L.U. case.

The civil liberties union filed suit on behalf of Edith S. Windsor, whose spouse, Thea C. Spyer, died last year of aortic stenosis. The two women, New Yorkers who had been together for 44 years, married in Toronto in 2007. New York officially recognizes same-sex marriages performed in other states. Had the two been man and wife, there would have been no federal estate tax to pay.

“It’s just so unfair,” said Ms. Windsor, who is 81.

Taken together, said Mary Bonauto, the director of the Civil Rights Project for the Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders, the cases show same-sex couples “are falling through the safety net other people count on.”

Traditionally, Ms. Bonauto noted, the federal government has left the definition of marriage to the states. “The federal government has respected those determinations, except in the instance of gay and lesbian couples marrying,” she said. The result, she said, is a violation of constitutional guarantees of equal protection.

GLAD does not play. Many people expect them to win their other lawsuit challenging DOMA, Gill v. OPM,  which is currently before the 1st Circuit Court of Appeals with GLAD winning at the circuit court level. That lawsuit was on behalf of same-sex couples who have been married in Massachusetts for at least 5 years.

Psycho Anti-Gay Cyber-Stalker Official Fired By Michigan AG

Homophobic whackadoodle Michigan Assistant Attorney General Andrew Shirvell has finally been fired by Michigan Attorney General for his bizarre cyber-bullying of openly gay University of Michigan student body president Chris Armstrong.

The AnnArbor.com reports:

Cox's investigation into Shirvell showed he:

• Showed up at Armstrong's home three separate times, including once at 1:30 a.m. "That incident is especially telling because it clearly was about harassing Mr. Armstrong, not engaging in free speech," the statement said.

• "Engaged in behavior that, while not perhaps sufficient to charge criminal stalking, was harassing, uninvited and showed a pattern that was in the everyday sense, stalking."

• Harassed Armstrong's friends as they were socializing in Ann Arbor. 

• Called Speaker Nancy Pelosi's office, Armstrong's employer, in an attempt to "slander Armstrong and ultimately attempting to cause Pelosi to fire Armstrong.

• Attempted to "out" Armstrong's friends as homosexual — several of whom aren't gay.

The investigation found Shirvell engaged in his campaign on company time, Cox said. Shirvell called Pelosi's office while at work, during working hours, and sometimes posted online attacks about Armstrong while at work, the statement said.

In addition, Cox's statement said, Shirvell lied to investigating assistant attorneys general on several occasions during his disciplinary hearing.

"The cumulative effects of his use of state resources, harassing conduct that is not protected by the First Amendment, and his lies during the disciplinary conference all demonstrate adequate evidence of conduct unbecoming a state employee," the statement said. "Ultimately, Mr. Shirvell's conduct has brought his termination from state service."

Eye Candy: Maiko Lima

Maiko Lima is a model from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil I found on ModelMayhem.com. He is also today's Eye Candy. Enjoy!

Federer Beats Djokovic To Regain Basel Title

Roger Federer regained his hometown title in Basel, Switzerland by defeating defending champion Novak Djokovic in 3-sets (as I  predicted yesterday) 6-4 3-6 6-1. Federer has now won the tournament 4 times in the last 5 years, and Basel became the 9th tournament that the Swiss Great has won at least 4 times.

Federer improved to 12-6 career head-to-head versus Djokovic and with his 65th tournament win pulled out of a  tie with Pete Sampras at #4 on the list of all-time most tournaments won.

Federer-Djokovic Rematch For Basel Final

Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic each won their semifinal matches, setting up a rematch of last year's final which was won by the Serbian, ending the Swiss's win streak of 3 consecutive Basel titles.

Federer leads Djokovic 11-6 in the career head-to-head match-up, as well as 2-1 this year. Djokovic, however, won their most important meeting this year, in the 2010 US Open semifinals, and is 2-1 in finals this year as compared to Federer's measly 3-4 record (although one of those 3 wins is the 2010 Australian Open).

MadProfessah's Prediction: Federer in 3 sets.

CA-AG: Cooley Pulls Ahead Of Harris In Latest Vote Tally

With the vote totals updated on Friday afternoon, Republican Steve Cooley has pulled ahead of Kamala Harris for the first time in the post-election day tallies and currently leads by 22,817 votes.

Steve Cooley (Rep)     3,518,918 46.0%
Kamala D. Harris (Dem)     3,496,101 45.7%
Diane Beall Templin (AI)    133,186 1.7%
Peter Allen (Grn)     195,921 2.5%
Timothy J. Hannan (Lib)     192,018 2.5%
Robert J. Evans (P&F)     123,197 1.6%

Hopefully this does not include a large percentage of Los Angeles County ballots or else things would look  very bad indeed for Ms. Harris to become the next Attorney General of California.

With estimates of more than 2 million outstanding ballots to be counted and Cooley's campaign claiming there are more outstanding ballots in the 40 counties he won than the 18 Harris carried this result is really too close to call. With that many ballots, one probably has to give the edge to Cooley.

My Former Student Is In Sunday's New York Times

My goodness! One of my students from last year's CSP19: Gay Rights in the Obama Era, Josh Erdman (pictured above, right), is quoted in today's New York Times in an article entitled "For Gays, New Songs Of Survival":

THERE is no better place to witness the growing pains of pop music than on the video-sharing site YouTube, where for the past year Josh Erdman, 20, and Bill Klute, 19, both sophomores at Occidental College in Los Angeles [emphasis added], have been posting clips of themselves singing covers of pop songs by Miley Cyrus, B.o.B, Kelly Clarkson and other Top 40 regulars. Shot mostly in Mr. Erdman’s dormitory room, where the walls are adorned with posters of Lady Gaga and from the television series “True Blood,” the videos have the simplicity and sincerity of a campfire singalong. After several of the clips received over 100,000 views, the two men began to add a small stamp to the videos that reads “Legalize Gay,” a line that Mr. Klute cribbed from a T-shirt he bought at American Apparel.

“We weren’t sure if we were going to express our orientation with these videos,” said Mr. Erdman, a member of Occidental’s Queer Straight Alliance. “But we wanted people like us to know we’re out there.”

After finding “We R Who We R” on a music-sharing Web site a couple of weeks ago, they updated the stamp to read, “Legalize Gay ’Cause We Are Who We Are.”

“The lyrics obviously spoke to us,” Mr. Klute said. “What these artists are doing means the world to the gay community.”

The article even links to their YouTube channel, KoverBoys. I am amazed! 

Federer To Face Roddick In Basel Semis; Djokovic in Other Semi

World #2 Roger Federer will face American Andy Roddick for the first time since they played their historic, classic Wimbledon final in July 2009 which Federer won 16-14 in the fifth set. Federer and Roddick will play in the semifinals of the Swiss Indoor tournament which is played in the 16-time major champion's home town of Basel, Switzerland where Federer once served as a ball boy and now owns part of the tournament. 

World #3 and Defending champion Novak Djokovic will play fellow Serbian Victor Troicki in the other semifinal. Last year, Djokovic defeated Federer before his hometown crowd in an exciting 3-set match.

The French Indoor ATP Masters series event begins in Paris on Monday and World #1 Rafael Nadal will not be playing, having withdrawn today due to medical reasons (injured shoulder).

NO JUSTICE! Oscar Grant Killer Cop Gets 2-Year Sentence

Wow! Johannes Mehserle, the Oakland public transit officer who shot and killed Oscar Grant III on January 1st, 2009 has been sentenced to two measly years for the unarmed fatal shooting of a Black man by a Los Angeles County Superior Court judge. Mehserle had previously been found guilty of involuntary manslaughter this summer but could have received a maximum of 14 years with a gun enhancement.

Judge Robert Perry threw out the sentence enhancement due to the commission of  a crime using a gun by calling the incident "an accidental shooting" AND gave Mehserle credit for time served so far, so that the killer cop could be released in 219 days.

The Los Angeles Times reports:

After the sentencing was announced, Grant's mother, Wanda Johnson, emerged from the courtroom muttering, "Nothing, he got nothing!" The family declined to talk to reporters.

About 50 Grant supporters lined up in front of the courthouse chanting, "Mehserle is guilty, guilty. The whole damn system is guilty, guilty."

In downtown Oakland, where a memorial was being set up for his grandson, Oscar Grant Sr., 65, said, “It’s a bad decision. No time can bring [Oscar] back. But [Mehserle] should have served some time. Otherwise, they’re telling the public, though he went to trial, a policeman can shoot someone and go free. These guys have a license to kill.”

But the elder Grant discouraged violent protests.

We'll see! This is really a sickening situation, especially since the original incident where Mehserle shot and killed Grant in the back while he was lying face down on the ground was captured on video!

Celebrity Friday: Elena Dementieva

Elena Dementieva, widely regarded as the most talented active player to not have won a major title, retired at the age of 29 on Friday Octobet 31 from competitive tennis.

Dementieva reached two major finals, the 2004 French Open (lost to Anastasia Myskina) and the 2004 U.S. Open (lost to Svetlana Kuznetsova), and won the Gold medal in Singles at the 2008 Beijing Olympics as well as 16 WTA Tour titles. Her career record was 576 wins and 273 losses.

In 2009, Dementieva played the best match of the year in the semifinals of the Wimbledon Championships, losing to Serena Williams despite holding a match point, who commented on Dementieva's retirement thusly:

Elena you will be missed. The matches we competed in were always so intense. You helped make me better both on and off the court...

All the best to you Love, and to all your endeavors.

CA-AG: Harris Lead Now Down To 4 Digits

In the down-to-the-wire election for California Attorney General ,Kamala Harris's slim lead over Steve Cooley has been significantly reduced to 9,364 (out of over 7 million total) as numbers come in around the state, although the campaign is still expressing confidence since there are nearly one million outstanding ballots, most of which were cast within the last few days of the election when Harris was clearly leading. (In order to have a lead now, Harris must have received more votes on Election Day itself, and historically absentee and provisional votes follow the pattern of election day ballots.)

The latest tally is:

Candidate		Votes	Percent
	Kamala D. Harris (Dem)	3,307,599	45.9%
	Steve Cooley (Rep)	3,298,235	45.8%
	Diane Beall Templin (AI)	125,507	1.7%
	Peter Allen (Grn)	185,729	2.5%
	Timothy J. Hannan (Lib)	180,682	2.5%
	Robert J. Evans (P&F)	117,303	1.6%

I am still relatively confident that Harris will win, but it's gnna be a squeaker. It may even involve a recount!

Kye Allums: Openly Transgender NCAA Div. 1 Basketball Player

Kye Allums, is getting a lot of mainstream press coverage about his transition from female to male while continuing to play on the George Washington University female NCAA Division 1 Basketball team.

Official statements from GWU and Allums follow:

Statement from Robert Chernak, Senior Vice Provost and Senior Vice President for Student Academic and Support Services:

“Student-athlete Kye Allums has decided to live as a male student and be referred to as a male. The George Washington University supports Kye and his right to make this decision. Kye has informed the university that he will not begin any medical or drug protocols while a student-athlete. The University consulted the NCAA regarding his competitive status. Kye will continue to be a member of the women’s basketball team. Kye has informed his teammates, and the university, with Kye’s consent, has informed athletics staff and others, as appropriate.”

Statement from junior Kye Allums, male member of George Washington’s women’s basketball team:

“GW has been supportive during this transition. This means a lot. I didn’t choose to be born in this body and feel the way I do. I decided to transition, that is change my name and pronouns because it bothered me to hide who I am, and I am trying to help myself and others to be who they are. I told my teammates first, and they, including my coaches, have supported me. My teammates have embraced me as the big brother of the team. They have been my family, and I love them all.”

Thoughts about this modern example of gender expression and sports? For example, do you think that Kye should be unable to play on the men's team when he completes his transition from female to male? If that should happen then, then why not now?

Cross-posted from #CSP19: LGBT Rights in the Era of Obama and Google.

Obama Answers DADT Question At Post-Election Press Conference

Kamala Harris Now Holds Slim Lead Before Absentees Counted

San Francisco District Attorney Kamala Harris

The latest numbers (100% of precincts counted) from the Secretary of State Debra Bowen (who was re-elected last night) show that San Francisco District Attorney Kamala Harris has a pretty good chance to become the first female attorney general of California:

Kamala D. Harris    DEM 3,292,836    45.9%
Steve Cooley        REP 3,277,998    45.7%
Timothy J. Hannan   LIB 179,594      2.5%
Peter Allen         GRN 184,841      2.6%
Diane Beall Templin AI 124,841       1.7%
Robert J. Evans     PF 116,690       1.6%

That's a lead of 14,838 votes. There are still absentee ballots and provisional ballots outstanding. Absentee tend to be more conservative than the electorate while provisional can be either liberal or conservative, so basically all we can say is that Harris has done amazingly well in her first statewide race for office. Even if she loses the race, maybe she should consider running for Dianne Feinstein's U.S. Senate seat in 2012?

UPDATE 11/03/2010 4:37PM
The Registrar Recorder/County Clerk of Los Angeles County is reporting that it has some 399,960 votes to be counted. Assuming that Harris maintains her 53%-39% edge in these Los Angeles County ballots, then this should results in at least an increase in Harris' lead of 50,000 votes (assuming a 12-13 point lead for Harris in these ballots). I think we can safely say that Harris has pulled this one out. In the rest of the counties there are probably no more than 800,000-1,200,000 votes to be counted, since Los Angeles generally has about 1/3-1/4 of all votes cast statewide. Cooley would have to win all those non-LA County ballots by a greater margin than 53-47 (or 6 percentage points more than Harris) assuming there are 1.2 million ballots outstanding, and would have to win by a margin greater than 54-46 (or 8 percentage points greater than Harris) if there are only 800,000 non-LA ballots outstanding to be counted. Both scenarios seem to me to give Cooley a very unlikely chance of winning. Of course it's possible, but not very probable, that the outstanding ballots could have an overwhelmingly different character than all other ballots and be very pro-Cooley but that's a very low probability possibility. Congrats to Attorney-General-elect Kamala Harris!

CA and MD Openly LGBT Caucuses Reach Seven Each

Congressman-elect David Cicilline (RI-01)

Last night was a big night for openly LGBT candidates, with the most ever being elected nationwide, including a fourth openly gay member of Congress in David Cicilline, the openly gay mayor of Providence, Rhode Island who was elected to represent the 1st Congressional District.

There are now five African Amererican LGBT state representatives around the country: Simone Bell (GA), Mary Washington (MD), Marcus Brandon (NC), Jason Bartlett (CT) and Gordon Fox (RI). Two states have the largest LGBT legislative contingents ever: seven in both Maryland and California.

Maryland: Senator Rich Madaleno (D-18) and Delegates Maggie McIntosh (D-43), Heather Mizeur (D-20), and Anne Kaiser (D-14), Bonnie Cullison (D-19), Mary Washington (D-43), and Luke Clippinger (D-46)

California: Senators Mark Leno (SD-3) and Christine Kehoe (SD-39), Assemblymembers John Perez (AD-46), Ricardo Lara (AD-50), Tom Ammiano (AD-13), Toni Atkins (AD-76) and Rich Gordon (AD-21)

So, it's not all bad news out there.

Hat/tip to Denis Dison of the Victory Fund.

Iowa Rejects 3 Supreme Court Justices Who Legalized Marriage Equality

This is a heartbreaking loss for the LGBT side and supporters of an independent judiciary. After the National Organization of Marriage spent hundreds of thousands of dollars, three Justices of the 7-member Iowa Supreme Court who supported last year's unanimous Varnum v. Brien decision legalizing marriage equality have been voted out of office by Iowa voters.

A joint statement from the judges:

It was our great privilege to serve the people of Iowa for many years. Throughout our judicial service we endeavored to serve the people of Iowa by always adhering to the rule of law, making decisions fairly and impartially according to the law, and faithfully upholding the constitution.

We wish to thank all of the Iowans who voted to retain us for another term. Your support shows that many Iowans value fair and impartial courts. We also want to acknowledge and thank all the Iowans, from across the political spectrum and from different walks of life, who worked tirelessly over the past few months to defend Iowa's high-caliber court system against an unprecedented attack by out-of-state special interest groups.

Finally, we hope Iowans will continue to support Iowa's merit selection system for appointing judges. This system helps ensure that judges base their decisions on the law and the Constitution and nothing else. Ultimately, however, the preservation of our state's fair and impartial courts will require more than the integrity and fortitude of individual judges, it will require the steadfast support of the people.

Chief Justice Marsha Ternus

Associate Justice Michael Streit

Associate Justice David Baker

Very sad news.

2010 CA Statewide Election Results Summary

Here are the results from the 2010 Statewide General Election in California.

Proposition         MadProfessah    California
19 (Marijuana)      YES             NO  45-55
20 (Redistricting)  NO              YES 64-36
21 (State Parks)    YES             NO  41-59 
22 (Local Funds)    NO              YES 63-37 
23 (Suspends AB-32) NO              NO  41-59  

24 (Ends Tax Cuts)   YES             NO  40-60 

25 (Majority Vote)   YES             YES 54-46

26 (2/3 Fee Vote)   NO              YES 55-45   

27 (Undoes Prop 11) YES             NO  40-60

Statewide Races        MadProfessah California
Governor               Brown        Brown    

U.S. Senator           Boxer*       Boxer*   
Lieutenant Governor    Newsom       Newsom   
Attorney General       Harris       Cooley 
Secretary of State     Bowen*       Bowen*  
Treasurer              Lockyer*     Lockyer* 

Controller             Chiang*      Chiang*  
Insurance Commissioner Jones        Jones       
Supt. of Public Inst.  Torlakson    Torlakson

I'm very happy about Boxer and Brown winning but verklempt that the Democrats were not able to shut out Republican Steve Cooley from a statewide constitutional office.

UPDATE 11/03/2010 07:01am:
The attorney general race may not be over, folks! With 96.2% of precincts counted the totals are:

Peter Allen         GRN 180,931      2.6%
Steve Cooley        REP 3,182,605    45.5%
Robert J. Evans     PF 113,512       1.6%
Timothy J. Hannan   LIB 175,223      2.5%
Kamala D. Harris    DEM 3,222,987    46.1%
Diane Beall Templin AI 120,550       1.7%

If Haris holds on, it means Prop 8 will definitely not be appealed by the state of California, and she will be the first African-American person elected statewide in over 32 years! Go, girl!

Openly Gay Black Man Elected To NC House of Representatives

Marcus Brandon has been elected to the North Carolina House of Representatives.  He will represent the cities of Greensboro and High Point in the state legislature.

Brandon will be the only openly LGBT state legislator in North Carolina, and one of just five openly LGBT African-Americans serving in state legislatures across the country (including Maryland House of Delegates candidate Mary Washington, who will also win tonight).

Openly lesbian N.C. State Sen. Julia Boseman is stepping down at the end of this term.

Today is Election Day! Go Vote!!

Here, again, are my endorsements for the 2010 California Statewide General election:

Proposition        ME   LAT  CALITICS CA DEM LA DEM LWV
19 (Marijuana)     YES   NO    YES    ---    YES   ---
20 (Redistricting) NO    YES   NO     NO     NO    NO
21 (State Parks)   YES   NO    YES    YES    YES   ---
22 (Local Funds)   NO    NO    ---    NO     NO    ---
23 (Suspends AB-32)NO    NO    NO     NO     NO    NO

24 (Ends Tax Cuts) YES   NO    YES    YES    YES   YES

25 (Majority Vote) YES   YES   YES    YES    YES   YES

26 (2/3 Fee Vote)  NO    NO    NO     NO     NO    NO

27 (Undoes Prop 11)YES   NO    YES    YES    YES   NO

Statewide Races          ME         LA TIMES DEMOCRATS
Governor                 Brown      Brown    Brown

U.S. Senator             Boxer*     Boxer*   Boxer*
Lieutenant Governor      Newsom     Newsom   Newsom
Attorney General         Harris     Cooley   Harris
Secretary of State       Bowen*     Bowen*   Bowen*
Treasurer                Lockyer*   Lockyer* Lockyer*

Controller               Chiang*    Chiang*  Chiang*
Insurance Commissioner   Jones      Jones    Jones   
Supt. of Public Inst.    Torlakson  Aceves   Torlakson

Bd. of Equalization, #1  Yee*       ---      Yee*    

Bd. of Equalization, #2  ---        ---      Parker

Bd. of Equalization, #3  ---        ---      Christian-Heising

Bd. of Equalization, #4  ---        ---      Horton*

9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Puts DADT Back Into Effect

A 3-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled 2-1 today to make a temporary stay permanent while the United States is appealing its loss in federal court in Log Cabin Republicans v. United States in which a federal U.S. District court judge struck down the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy and enjoined the government from enforcing the policy.

Read the text of today's ruling below:
DADT Stay Order 11.01.2010

This means that the military's ban on open lesbian and gays serving in the military will continue during the expected lengthy appellate process. The government's brief in that appeal is not due until January 24, 2011.

However, per President Obama's promise that DADT will end this year, there is still a chance that legislation to repeal the policy will be passed by Congress in a lame duck session after tomorrow's election but before the newly elected members are sworn in for the 112th Congress on January 3, 2011.

Nate Silver's Final 2010 Election Predictions

Above are the final predictions made by Nate Silver of Five Thirty Eight about the 2010 id-Term elections for U.S. Senate, U.S. House of Representatives and Governors races.

Eye Candy: Matt Acton

Matt Acton is a 5'10", 170-pound, 22-year-old model from New York City. According toDavid Dust, he is also a competitive bodybuilder and runs a sports suplements business. Beauty and brains!