Incertus

It's not dead yet

But I am, for the first time in a long time, cautiously optimistic.

TALLAHASSEE - A gay marriage ban and several other citizen initiatives were short the signatures needed to get on the November ballot Monday with just two weeks left before a petition-gathering deadline.

Sponsors of the gay marriage ban a month ago announced they had met the 611,009 signature requirement, but revised numbers issued by the state showed the proposed amendment to the Florida Constitution is still 21,989 signatures short.

That's because Miami-Dade County election officials last week discovered they had submitted duplicate signature reports, said Department of State spokesman Sterling Ivey.

So the sponsors have two weeks to get another 22,000 valid signatures processed and turned in. I don't know squat about organizing that sort of thing, but it seems like a significant hurdle to clear given that time frame, which is good. I liked our chances at beating this at the ballot box because, since it would be a constitutional amendment, it would need 60% to win, and I think we can clear the 40% barrier here, especially in a year where there are no major statewide races except for the presidential election, but it's better for everyone involved if it's not on the ballot in the first place.

Pam has more on the story.