Readers of blogs like Towleroad and GayPolitics may have come across a story this week about Newark, Delaware City Councilman Ezra Temko, who pushed anti-discrimination legislation through the council, and came out in the process.

What you might not have read is that Ezra is also a graduate of People For Foundation’s Young People For and Front Line Leaders Academy, and is now a member of our Young Elected Officals Network. I’ve had the pleasure of working with Ezra during some communications trainings in those programs, and would like to add that in addition to being a trailblazer, Ezra is also one of the nicest, most genuine guys I’ve gotten to know in my time at People For.

So congratulations Ezra, on bringing a little more fairness and equality to the Blue Hen State.

This week, right-wing polling firm Rasmussen Reports heralded a new poll which supposedly revealed that 64% of Americans think that "Supreme Court decisions should be based on what is written in the Constitution," whereas only 27% think the decisions "should be guided by fairness and justice." Yes, you heard that right, Rasmussen conducted a poll which pitted "fairness and justice" against "what is written in the Constitution" and then blasted out a press release about their amazing findings.

The media all too often treats pollsters like they're interchangeable, and that's a shame. Rasmussen is infamous among pollsters for its automated polling method – computers, not people, ask the questions – which is frowned upon by mainstream practitioners. And sometimes I have to wonder whether the computers are doing more than just asking the questions. It's almost as if they're writing the poll questions and sending out the press releases too.

But back to this week's poll. Focus on the Family quickly chimed in to say it "reveals that the American people are much more conservative regarding judges than our president is or any of the liberals in Congress." This is laughable, but we can't just laugh it off.

The Right has convinced millions of Americans that the Constitution is inherently conservative and that woolly-headed liberal judges disregard the Constitution and our laws in order to reach their desired outcomes. But these are just myths they've created to help prevent what we, and the overwhelming majority of Americans, really want: a Supreme Court that interprets the Constitution in a fair and just way. There is no need to choose between "fairness and justice" and "what is written in the Constitution." We want both.

And as for Rasmussen, it's clear enough to see the game they're playing. If you ask people ridiculous questions they're going to give you ridiculous responses. You don't need a poll and a press release to tell us that.

Kathryn Kolbert is president of People For the American Way Foundation

People For President Kathryn Kolbert joined American University law professor Jamin Raskin on Tuesday to discuss Barack Obama and the Supreme Court on Pacifica's What's at Stake. Among other things, Kolbert and Raskin discussed what progressives should look for in an Obama nominee to the Court.

Click below to listen to the interview:

Voting rights activists and web designers alike should take a look at the Election Assistance Commission's new best practices for voter information websites.

Most of the information to be included on a website seems to be pretty obvious:

• Answers to common voter questions such as “Am I registered to vote?” and “Where do I vote?”
• A mapping service to show polling locations.
• A sample ballot that is identical to the ballot issued for the election.
• Information on the registration and voting process.

But a point later on might be easy to overlook.

• Well designed interfaces that are easy to navigate.

God bless the District of Columbia, but its Board of Elections and Ethics website is kind of a mess. I’m sure they include everything they ought to, but for the life of me, I couldn’t find information about in-person absentee voting and it took me forever to find my sample ballot. I have to imagine that if the site were designed by, say, these guys, I’d be able to find everything just fine.

Just one of the many ways in which voting can (and should) be made less cumbersome.

Those watching Anderson Cooper 360 last night got a real treat in the form of Dan Savage revealing Tony Perkins for the anti-gay, anti-family misanthrope he is.

In addition to Perkins’ embarrassing ignorance on the role the Constitution plays in our society, and his intentional dishonesty about the pro-marriage bent of young people, be sure to notice how quickly he tries to instigate a fight between gay and black communities (two groups which never, ever, ever overlap.)

In conclusion: Tony Perkins is a hateful, hateful man.

The nature of jurisprudence is that big issues can be settled over small fights. Hence, at the Supreme Court today, the tiny Summum Church was arguing about whether religious monuments in public parks constitute private or government speech.

Adam Liptak at The New York Times covered the case earlier this week, and Nina Totenberg had a story on NPR this morning.

Although not at question in the case, one of the most interesting aspects is the Summum religion itself.

Su Menu, the church’s president, agreed. “If you look at them side by side,” Ms. Menu said of the two monuments, “they really are saying similar things.”

The Third Commandment: “Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain.”

The Third Aphorism: “Nothing rests; everything moves; everything vibrates.”

Now that’s religious diversity.

It was bad enough that the excitement about Obama's election had to share emotional space with the grim news about anti-gay initiatives passing in California, Florida, Arizona, and Arkansas.  But that news was made even worse by the destructive and racist reactions by some gay activists who are blaming black Californians for Prop 8's passage.  People For's President Kathryn Kolbert puts the blame where it belongs and calls for a forward-looking strategy. Read her memo here.

There are still several hours left to cast a ballot, even on the East Coast, where polls don't start closing till 6 p.m. (many states' polling places are open even later than that). So here's a quick reminder that if you run into problems while voting or have questions, call the nonpartisan Election Protection hotline at 1-866-OUR-VOTE.

1-866-OUR-VOTE. Tell your friends! Tell your enemies! Tell people about whom you feel utterly indifferent!

The hotline has logged nearly 30,000 calls so far today. You can see -- and search! -- a database of the problems they've been reporting at their website, www.ourvotelive.org.

In case you needed more reason to get out and vote, the interwebs are virtually flooded today with stories of people voting, and loving it.

In New York

Even more people out there now. I walked across the street and down the one block to Stroud elementary, and turned the corner to see the line. I have voted in this neighborhood for the past seven years, and the longest line I've ever seen was one snaking out from the gymnasium where the booths are, to the front door, about 20 feet away.

This morning, the line stretched past that point, out through the cast iron gates, turned to the left, and went nearly halfway down the New York City block street to Washington Avenue. It was 6:00 a.m. There were hundreds of people already on line, waiting patiently to cast their vote.

In Chicago

The guy behind me, in the line, was telling another voter that he hadn't voted or even registered to vote in 20 years. He had been moving around a lot and didn't have the time to register or give much thought to elections. He had recently moved from Louisiana to Texas, but this time he registered to vote. He registered twice to make sure that he'll get his card on time. I turned back and smiled at him when he said that. He was in his late fifties and looked excited to be there.

In DC

My precinct (68) has 1,740 registered voters, 814 of which turned out for the presidential primary. Voting at the precinct could be done by computer or paper ballot, and there were two paper ballot counting machines. The one I slipped my ballot into had already counted nearly 400 others, suggesting that the primary numbers may already have been topped before noon. My precinct may see something like 70% turnout on the day. Absolutely remarkable.

Lots of smiles all around.

In Maine

I popped over to the polling station in Rockland, and at 8:10 this morning there were about 40 people in line:

I ran into Rep. Ed Mazurek on the way out, and learned that over 1,400 absentee ballots had been cast in Rockland alone.

In Ohio

I waited in line for three hours to vote the other day. What amazed me was all the different people out there voting. There was this ridiculous line and a single mother was in front of me, she was trying to feed her child in her arms and scooted the baby carrier on the ground with her foot. I saw men and women in uniform, I saw elderly in wheelchairs, elderly standing in the line wheeling oxygen tanks along with them. When I got up to the poll worker who printed off my ballot for me, I asked her if it was like this every day. She said for the past week or so it had been, averaging thirty thousand people a day coming in to vote early. Then I read in the paper this morning about how Ohio is expecting an 80% voter turnout. It is absolutely amazing

In Seattle

6:45 am at Northgate - line going out the door already. 7:05 in the voting room - all booths full, lines for booths three people deep. Never thought I’d want to take a picture of me and a ballot before. I wish I had volunteered to work at a polling place, I want to be around that kind of vibe all day long!

And there are more. If you have a voting story you'd like to share, you can e-mail blogtalk@pfaw.org.

And, of course, if you have any trouble voting, you should be sure to call 1-866-OUR-VOTE.

Unless you've been living under a rock these past two years, you know that Election Day is tomorrow.

So the question of today -- Election Day Eve -- is: where the heck do I vote, when do I go, and what do I need to bring with me?

You can find out the answers to those questions at GoVote.org, a one-stop shop for all that information.

For more detailed information on voter ID requirements and voting rights, check out our voter ID flyers and toolkits. 

And remember, if you run into problems at the polls or have questions, call the nonpartisan Election Protection Hotline: 1-866-OUR-VOTE.

After you're done voting, celebrate your participation in this grand civic ritual with a free scoop at Ben and Jerry's between 5 p.m. and 8 p.m.

Huzzah for democracy -- and free dessert!