BAN BID: 47,648 NAMES OK SO FAR

The secretary of state's office said Friday that it has verified more
than half of the required number of signatures of registered voters to
place a proposed constitutional amendment banning same-sex unions on
the Nov. 2 ballot.

From Monday through Thursday, the office verified as valid 47,648 of
51,804 signatures checked so far on the petition for the proposal,
said Jill Belin, director of the elections division.

To qualify for the ballot, the petition must have at least 80,570
signatures of Arkansas' registered voters.

Belin said temporary employees will continue verifying signatures on
the petition until 89,127 are verified.

That figure was chosen because it is 10 percent more than required.
The employees are working under the supervision of the Jeffrey
Phillips Mosley and Scott law firm in Little Rock, she said.

Proponents of the Arkansas Marriage Amendment turned in a petition
with more than 200,000 signatures two weeks ago.

Belin said that when the office finishes checking the petition for the
marriage amendment, the workers will start checking signatures on a
petition to place another proposal, an initiated act, on the ballot.

That initiated act would allow the use of marijuana in some medical
situations.

Backers of the marijuana proposal turned in a petition they said had
more than 67,000 signatures on it.

To qualify for the ballot, a petition for an initiated act needs at
least 64,456 signatures of Arkansas' registered voters.