San Diego has a gay mayor!

It looks like San Diego, once a bastion of conservatism, now has an openly gay mayor, with news that Mayor Bob Filner has resigned. City Council President Todd Gloria will take over. Interestingly, San Diego had two strong LGBT candidates in the election that Filner just won (Mr. Gloria wasn't one of them).

San Diego Mayor Bob Filner to Resign

San Diego Mayor Bob Filner will resign after a six-week sexual harassment scandal in which more than a dozen women have said he made inappropriate advances toward them, NBC San Diego reports:

Filner, spotted leaving City Hall with packing boxes Wednesday night, will formally vacate the office following a closed session of City Council Friday according to several sources. Just before 7 p.m. Wednesday city officials announced a proposed solution in the scandal that has consumed the city of San Diego since it first broke July 10. In the last six weeks, more than a dozen women have come forward with tales of alleged sexual harassment and unwanted sexual advances.

Filner attended a mediation session with city officials on Monday after disappearing for three weeks.
Todd Gloria, the openly gay City Council President, will take over as acting mayor under the City Charter. There could be at least one primary special election within 60 to 90 days, according to NBC.

Read more: http://www.towleroad.com/#ixzz2ciaKGLou

CA Supreme Court Denies San Diego Clerk

In two separate cases, the Prop. 8 Proponents and the San Diego County Clerk are also asking the Court to limit the scope of federal district court decision that found Prop. 8 unconstitutional. Gay and lesbian couples have been able to marry in the state since June 28.

For the second time, the California Supreme Court has denied a request to immediately halt the marriages of gay and lesbian couples in the state.

Their cases have been called “baseless,” “frivolous” and “no chance of succeeding.”

The CA Supreme Court has denied the San Diego County Clerk’s request to halt same-sex marriages. #Prop8
— Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) July 23, 2013

California Supreme Court denies San Diego clerk's bid to stay gay marriages in #Prop8 case. Strike two.
— Howard Mintz (@hmintz) July 23, 2013

 Today, 24 county clerks also urged the California Supreme Court to continue to allow marriages in all of California’s 58 counties:

The state’s high court has recognized since 2004 that the clerks’ offices that issue marriage licenses “act under the supervision of state officials who are ultimately responsible for the state’s marriage license process,” said a lawyer for 20 elected clerks led by Stephen Vagnini of Monterey County.

San Diego County Clerk Wants To Halt Same-Sex Marriages

Yesterday, San Diego County Clerk Ernest J. Dronenburg Jr. filed a petition seeking to put an end to same-sex marriages in California - at least temporarily.

The LA Times reports: "Ernest J. Dronenburg Jr. argued that the court should halt weddings while it considers the argument that the federal court ruling should apply only to the two couples who sued over Proposition 8, as well as to the county clerks in Alameda and Los Angeles counties, where the couples live."

Dronenburg's office claims the document was filed for the purposes of clarification, saying they want to make "sure to follow the Constitution so there isn’t any confusion."

County Chairman Greg Cox was quick to distance himself from Dronenburg's office saying, "The County Clerk has acted independently on this matter. No one else from the County was consulted or had any part of this court action, including the Board of Supervisors. The County’s position is and always has been that we, the County, will follow applicable law with regards to same-sex marriage."

Also, California Attorney General Kamala Harris immediately issued a brief and stern response which essentially quashes Dronenburg's petition.

"The filing offers no new arguments that could deny same-sex couples their constitutionally protected civil rights. The federal injunction is still in effect, and it requires all 58 counties to perform same-sex marriages. No exceptions."

Read the entire petition here.