Anti-Gay French Politician Accidentally Votes In Favor Of Gay Marriage
Wikimedia CommonsAfter a long and sometimes violent process, France voted gay marriage into law yesterday after a 331-to-225 vote in the country's National Assembly.
However, it appears the voting process confused some politicians.
According to Le Point, noted right wing UMP politician and vocal opponent of gay marriage) Henri Guaino accidentally voted in favor of the bill, despite meaning to oppose it.
Worse still, three other members of his party (Luc Chatel, Alain Christian, and Marianne Dubois) also made the same mistake.
Guaino gave a statement to Le Lab that explained the vote was a mistake due to the electronic voting system:
"You saw the mess that was? I've never seen such a mess in the Assembly!
There were three buttons flashing, yes, I [pushed] the wrong button!
I went to the services of the Assembly to correct my vote."
However, it didn't take long for fellow politicians to mock him, with one Socialist politician suggesting he change his name to "Gayoui" (as in Gay-Yes):
Guaino, formerly an advisor to former French President Nicolas Sarkozy, had led what Le Monde described as a "crusade" against gay marriage, even writing a book addressed to Francois Hollande that demanded a referendum on the subject.
In case you are wondering, this is what the National Assembly's voting system looks like:
REUTERS/Charles Platiau