Jack Leonard, for the Los Angeles Times, has written about the upcoming "political showdown" in California over gay marriage. Yesterday, the California secretary of state said that the gay marriage initiate would be on the November 4 ballot. Voters will have to decide whether there should be a state constitutional amendment to define marriage as a union "between a man and a woman." 1.1 million people signed a petition for the ballot measure after the California Supreme Court overturned a ban on same-sex marriage. Officials "are expected to begin performing same-sex marriage ceremonies this month." There is also an article in today's New York Times about a lawsuit filed by New York lawmakers to block Governor David. A. Paterson's "order for state agencies to recognize same-sex marriages performed outside New York." The suit is supported by the Christian group, the Alliance Defense Fund.