FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: November 8, 2011
Contact: Mary Beth Hutchins (703-683-5004 x105)

Groups call for Criminal Investigation of Vile Calls Claiming to be From Marriage Supporters

Des Moines, IA — The National Organization for Marriage (NOM) and the Family Leader today decried bogus calls to voters in the 18th Senate District special election from a fake marriage organization and called on the Attorney General to launch an investigation into their source.

"Yesterday a phony group claiming to support marriage launched robo calls that were so offensive they clearly were designed to turn voters away from Cindy Golding because she supports marriage between one man and one woman," said Brian Brown, president of NOM. "Neither NOM nor Family Leader had anything to do with these calls and we decry them. We call on the Attorney General to launch an investigation into this dirty trick to determine who is behind the calls, which are designed to steal the election from Ms. Golding."

According to news reports, the calls came from a group calling itself "Citizens for Honesty and Sound Marriage in Iowa" and speak to voters about homosexual sex.

"NOM and the Family Leader have been out front advocates for Cindy Golding’s election for weeks, because she will help ensure that the voters of Iowa have the opportunity to vote on the definition of marriage in our state," said Bob Vander Plaats, president and CEO of Family Leader. "Our involvement in the race is well known and well documented. We would never use some phony group to deliver messages that are not only vile, they are bound to backfire."

Continued Brown: "This is a dirty trick that is being played on Ms. Golding, NOM, Family Leader and all legitimate supporters of traditional marriage. We demand that the Attorney General find out who is trying to steal this election by the use of dirty tricks like this."

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