NY Same-Sex Marriage: Ball Offered His Vote In Trade For Re-Election Aid
New York State Republican Senator Greg Ball attempted to offer his vote in favor of Governor Cuomo’s same-sex marriage equality bill for a promise from former Republican vice-president Dick Cheney to help Ball campaign come re-election time, according to a report in The New York Times Monday.
“It was a brazen request, gay marriage advocates thought,” The New York Times reports.
“Senator Greg Ball, a Republican, told them that if he voted to legalize same-sex marriage, he wanted assurances that national Republican leaders would campaign for him.
“His top choice: former Vice President Dick Cheney.
“The advocates privately chortled. Mr. Cheney had recently had major heart surgery and the possibility that he would travel to New York to endorse a state senator seemed beyond slim.
“Mr. Ball, of Putnam County, eventually voted no. But he said he did not regret his request.”
Senator Greg Ball, who used the weeks leading up to the historic vote that legalized same-sex marriage in New York State, disappointed hundreds of thousands — if not millions — of New Yorkers, along with untold thousands on Twitter and Facebook. The Twittering Senator, one week prior to the vote last Friday, asked on Twitter and Facebook how he should vote on Governor Cuomo’s same-sex marriage equality bill. A resounding “yes” came from almost every single response. Even Ball acknowledged early the following week the response was, according to one reporter, “a thousand to one” in favor, but Ball ultimately voted no, and said, prior to his vote, that most of the social media responses came from outside his district, as if that justified his decision, made prior to his flirtation with a yes vote on social media sites.
Ball will find re-election challenging because of his “no” vote.
For his efforts, including voting “no,” and teasing countless fans on Twitter and Facebook, Ball has already lost 820 of his 5549 Facebook fans, and 325 of his 3350 Twitter followers.
With this startling news of attempting to secure re-election campaign aid for voting a certain way — some might find that unethical, if not illegal — Ball has shown his true colors. He cared neither about religious exemptions, as he claimed, nor about the “morality” of the issue, merely, about securing his re-election.

Enjoy this piece?
… then let us make a small request. The New Civil Rights Movement depends on readers like you to meet our ongoing expenses and continue producing quality progressive journalism. Three Silicon Valley giants consume 70 percent of all online advertising dollars, so we need your help to continue doing what we do.
NCRM is independent. You won’t find mainstream media bias here. From unflinching coverage of religious extremism, to spotlighting efforts to roll back our rights, NCRM continues to speak truth to power. America needs independent voices like NCRM to be sure no one is forgotten.
Every reader contribution, whatever the amount, makes a tremendous difference. Help ensure NCRM remains independent long into the future. Support progressive journalism with a one-time contribution to NCRM, or click here to become a subscriber. Thank you. Click here to donate by check.
![]() |