“There have been people who said they would donate millions of dollars against the people who voted on some of these issues,” Sen. Roy McDonald said in a recent Saratogian story I wrote about money coming in from same-sex marriage supporters since his vote for marriage equality.
And it seems his fear is becoming a reality.
Recently the National Organization for Marriage announced it will be making good on a pledge of $2 million to defeat the four Republican senators who voted for the bill and the three Democratic senators who voted against same-sex marriage in 2009, but reversed that decision this year and passed it.
"This is the first step in what will be a sustained, determined effort to make sure the constituents of these cowardly Senators know what they have done," Brian Brown, NOM's president said in a recent press release.
The release outlined how the organization is spending $150,000 on mailers comparing Republican Senators Roy McDonald, Mark Grisanti, James Alesi and Stephen Saland, and Democratic Senators Shirley Huntley, Joseph Addabbo and Carl Kruger to Benedict Arnold, the Revolutionary War general who sold out his country and his until-then winning war-time reputation for British Pounds.
The mailers highlight previous stances some of the senators took against same-sex marriage and some of the money they have received since their vote from same-sex supporters.
"It is shameful that these state Senators flip-flopped on such a critical issue when they saw gay marriage backers raising millions from Wall Street," Brown said.
As of the story that ran on July 15, McDonald had raised $118,000 in campaign contributions since June 1, some of which came in the form of $10,300 contributions from same-sex marriage supporters, while other contributions came from Republican and union sources.
"You can't run a campaign on $10,000," McDonald said in the interview for that story, but he also added “in the last campaign, more money was raised against me than for me.” He won that race against Democrat and Saratoga Springs Supervisor Joanne Yepsen.
It will be interesting to see if that magic will happen again.

The city has not received many calls about same-sex marriage licenses according to Saratoga Springs Accounts Commissioner John Franck— that is, not many from people other than the media.
The commissioner said numerous calls have come from local media, as well as larger outlets like the New York Times, asking if any same-sex marriage couples had requested licenses and whether the city planned to open City Hall Sunday— the day the law takes effect— to issue the licenses.
"Since we have not received any calls requesting it, we will not be open July 24 to issue marriage licenses," he said. To date, Franck said he has only received two calls from private citizens, and they were general questions, not inquiries about Sunday and because City Hall would not typically be open Sunday, the 24th would be no exception.
"We are going to have a large demand, but we have not had any demand for (July 24)," he said.
In other cities like Albany and New York, the city clerks have been so inundated with requests for the licenses they are holding lotteries to see who can get legally wed Sunday and who will have to wait.
During the same City Council meeting Tuesday, Franck explained the new forms issued by the state.
"The changes are very minor," the commissioner evaluated.
On the current forms, there is a specific half for the Bride and Groom's information. On the new forms, both sides simply say "Bride/Groom/Spouse." They each have a spot to put the sex, but it is an optional addition.
Similarly, the original form has a spot that asks for each spouses' father and mother. The new form states: "Father or parent," and "Mother or parent," and where it used to ask for the "Signature of the Groom" and that of the "bride," now it just says" "Signature."

Here are the new and current documents with the changes circled by Franck:

Saratoga Springs Marriage License Forms

With Gov. Andrew Cuomo pushing for a vote in the senate on same-sex marriage before the end of the legislative session next Monday, Sen. Roy McDonald (R-Saratoga) is on the side that may decide the debate.
Twenty-nine of thirty Democrats (barring Sen. Ruben Diaz Sr., a Democratic Bronx minister)and one Republican (Sen. James Alesi of Monroe County) are expected to support allowing same-sex couples to marry in the state, but that is two votes shy of passing legislation on it in the Republican-controlled Senate.
McDonald's spokesperson, Michael Veitch, said Tuesday morning the Senator has decided on his stance on same-sex marriage and will announce it within the next few days.
Sen. Hugh T. Farley (R-Schenectady) said through a staffer on Tuesday that "He is in favor of a traditional marriage between one man and one woman," so Saratoga County residents can count him firmly on the side of being in the "Nay" category for this legislation.
We'll be sure to let you know when McDonald comes out with his stance, though it may not be until he casts his vote on the Senate floor if and when same-sex marriage comes up for another vote (it failed in 2009).