Cuomo strategy shepherds gay marriage into N.Y.

Governor was able to corral unlikely assembly of forces

June 26, 2011|By Michael Barbaro, New York Times

Governor Andrew Cuomo became personally involved in the effort to legalize… (Mike Groll/Associated…)

NEW YORK — In the 35th-floor conference room of a Manhattan high-rise, two of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo’s most trusted advisers held a secret meeting a few weeks ago with a group of super-rich Republican donors.

Over tuna and turkey sandwiches, the advisers explained that New York’s Democratic governor was determined to legalize same-sex marriage and would deliver every possible Senate vote from his own party.

Would the donors win over the deciding Senate Republicans? It sounded improbable: top Republican moneymen helping a Democratic rival with one of his biggest legislative goals.

But the donors in the room — the billionaire Paul Singer, whose son is gay, joined by the hedge fund managers Cliff Asness and Dan Loeb — had the influence and the money to insulate nervous senators from conservative backlash if they supported the marriage measure. And they were inclined to see the issue as one of personal freedom, consistent with their more libertarian views.

Within days, the wealthy Republicans sent back word: They were on board. Each of them cut six-figure checks to the lobbying campaign that eventually totaled more than $1 million.

Steve Cohen, the number two in Cuomo’s office and a participant in the meeting, began to see a path to victory, telling a colleague, “This might actually happen.’’

The same-sex marriage law, which was signed by Cuomo just before midnight Friday, will go into effect in 30 days, meaning that gay couples can marry here beginning July 24. Gay couples from out of state will also be allowed to apply for wedding licenses and hold nuptials in New York.

Roughly 45,000 gay couples live in New York State, according to census estimates. Officials across the state are readying for thousands to get married, especially in the first week.

Four Republican senators joined all but one Democrat in supporting the measure, which passed by a vote of 33 to 29.

The story of how same-sex marriage became legal in New York is about shifting public sentiment and individual lawmakers moved by emotional appeals from gay couples.

But, behind the scenes, it was really about a Republican Party reckoning with a profoundly changing power dynamic, where Wall Street donors and gay-rights advocates demonstrated more might and muscle than a Roman Catholic hierarchy and an ineffective opposition.

And it was about a Democratic governor, himself a Catholic, who used the force of his personality and relentlessly strategic mind to persuade conflicted lawmakers to take a historic leap.