"The dynamics of the Proposition 8 campaign were unique. We were asking voters for a Yes vote to ban same-sex marriage and restore traditional marriage... We needed to convince voters that gay marriage was not simply "live and let live"--that there would be consequences if gay marriage were to be permanently legalized... We made one of the key strategic decisions in the campaign, to apply the principles of running a "No" campaign--raising doubts and pointing to potential problems--in seeking a "Yes" vote... We recon?rmed in our early focus groups our own views that Californians had a tolerant opinion of gays. But there were limits to the degree of tolerance that Californians would afford the gay community. They would entertain allowing gay marriage, but not if doing so had signi?cant implications for the rest of society."

-- From an article by Frank Schubert and Jeff Flint, the winning consultants on Prop 8, detailing how they won the California anti-same-sex marriage campaign.