Voters continue to lean towards Prop 1 rejection on Day 2
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By the second day of tallying ballots, Proposition 1 still leans towards not passing. As of Wednesday evening, there are 30,711 votes against the proposal, and 27,207 votes in favor of it.
On Tuesday, there was a difference of 3,884 votes. One day later and that difference has shrunk slightly – it's now 3,504 votes.
As of Wednesday evening, MOA reports that 57,918 votes were tallied towards this measures. That makes up 26.5 percent of this election's total registered voters.
Polls are closed, and Proposition 1 – also commonly referred to as the Bathroom Bill – is leaning towards a "no" vote, with 26,845 votes against the proposal, and 22,961 in favor of it, according to the first batch of numbers released by the Municipality Tuesday evening.
As of Tuesday evening, MOA reports that 49,806 votes were tallied towards this measure. Moreover, that makes up 22.8 percent of this election's total registered voters.
Voting "yes" to Proposition 1 would pass it. This means that access to facilities – particularly locker rooms and bathrooms – would be regulated based on an individual's sex at birth, rather than gender identity. Backers in support of a "yes" vote say that businesses and churches should be allowed to decide their bathroom policy – not governments.
But by voting "no" on the proposal, no such regulations would be implemented; in fact, nondiscrimination protections from Anchorage's ordinances would remain in place. Opponents say the measure would be difficult to enforce, and that it is an attack on transgender individuals.
Tuesday evening, Channel 2 caught up with supporters and opponents of the proposal -- both sides say they are still "cautiously optimistic," after the preliminary results were revealed.
"I hope that the vote narrows at the margin arrows, and that we do better as the night goes on," said Kim Minnery, a supporter of Prop 1. "I expect that will happen."
Channel 2 also spoke with a field organizer against Proposition 1, Lillian Lennon. After seeing the preliminary results, Lennon also prefaced that she was "cautiously optimistic."
"But as you can see, we've brought a lot of people here in support of us – in opposition to Proposition 1," said Lennon. "We've built an amazing campaign, and regardless of the actual turnout, when all the ballots come in, I feel very confident."