Senators Asked To Make Switch

The Pro-Family Coalition, a conservative interest group, is calling for three senators, including Thornton’s Eugene Prince, to switch parties.

The organization is upset that Prince, Shirley Winsley, and Jeanette Wood, all Republicans, joined Democrats in supporting an amendment that took a referendum clause off the anti-same sex marriage bill, which passed the Senate on Wednesday.

The bill would prohibit the state of Washington from recognizing gay marriages. The referendum clause would have sent the issue directly to voters, allowing HB1130 to escape Gov. Gary Locke’s veto pen.

“What he did was really hypocritical,” said Gary Small, director of Washington Opposed to Prohomosexual Policies, an arm of the coalition. “He didn’t give people the chance to vote. This has been just one of several issues where he has been a thorn in the flesh of conservatives in this state.”

Prince, who opposes same-sex marriages and voted for the bill, said he won’t be switching parties anytime soon.

“My party was moderate when I joined,” he said. “I’m not part of (the conservative) group.”