The race to replace Maryland’s retiring, gay-friendly U.S. Sen. Paul Sarbanes intensified this week as candidates sped toward the Sept. 12 primary.

Kweisi Mfume, who backs equal marriage rights for gay couples, and U.S. Rep. Ben Cardin, who favors civil unions, lead a pack of 18 candidates seeking the Democratic nomination. Mfume trails Cardin in most polls.

The winner of the Sept. 12 primary is expected to face Lt. Gov. Michael Steele, the presumed Republican nominee, and Green Party candidate Kevin Zeese. Steele opposes gay marriage; Zeese backs equal marriage rights.

Equality Maryland Executive Director Dan Furmansky said Democratic primary voters must carefully choose who they want to replace Sarbanes.

“For decades, Paul Sarbanes has represented Marylanders in the U.S. Senate and has been a strong vote for protecting the rights of LGBT citizens,” he said. “With that seat now open, we’re facing a critical race to defeat Lt. Gov. Michael Steele, a Republican running a vibrant campaign.”

A recent statewide poll of 500 registered voters showed Cardin would fair better than Mfume against Steele.

The poll, conducted Aug. 1 and 2 by Public Opinion Strategies, showed Cardin could defeat Steele by a margin of 43 to 35 percent. A race between Mfume and Steele resulted in a statistical dead heat, with both candidates polling at about 40 percent.

But gay activists cautioned Marylanders against basing their votes solely on a candidate’s political viability.

Meredith Moise of the National Black Justice Coalition said there are more important reasons to support a candidate.

“I always support the viewpoint that people should vote for the candidate that best articulates their needs, their desires and their wants,” she said.

Furmansky agreed. He has an answer for Marylanders who wonder whether it’s more important to support their ideal candidate, or the most viable candidate.

“It’s a question that comes up in a lot of conversations, with the perception and some polling data to indicate that Cardin would be more competitive against Steele,” Furmansky said. “That said, I believe there’s merit to the argument that when a party unites behind a candidate, that candidate becomes more competitive.”

Mfume, Cardin views differ

The campaign’s leading Democratic candidates, Mfume and Cardin, both support gay civil rights, but to differing degrees.

Mfume, a former congressman and past president of the NAACP, said earlier this year that he backs equal marriage rights for gays.

“As someone who was raised to believe in traditional marriage, it does not mean others cannot have different beliefs,” he told the Blade in January. “I recognize [civil union] laws don’t cover all the benefits and all the rights that could and should be accrued to same-sex couples.”

Cardin does not support equal marriage rights, and instead favors civil unions.

A statement released by his campaign earlier this year said that Cardin “will continue to work to ensure that all committed couples enjoy the same legal opportunities,” but “believes that marriage is between a man and a woman.”

Mfume achieved three perfect scores from the Human Rights Campaign during his three ranked terms in office.

During his final scored term, from 1993 to 1994, Mfume voted to block codification of the military’s ban on gay soldiers, opposed a ban on the immigration of people who are HIV positive, and opposed efforts to block the D.C. domestic partners ordinance.

Cardin averaged a 91 score from eight HRC rankings. In his most recent scoring, Cardin received 77 of 100.

He voted against the Marriage Protection Amendment and supported efforts to expand federal hate crime laws to cover serious crimes committed because of real or perceived sexual orientation.

But he wouldn’t adopt a voluntary office policy stating that sexual orientation is not a factor in employment decisions. He also failed to support the proposed Uniting American Families Act, which would allow gay Americans to sponsor their foreign partners for immigration.

Neither campaign responded to the Blade’s repeated requests for comment in connection with this article.

  Activists favor Mfume

In interviews last week, gay activists strongly supported Mfume.

“This is not a recent trend,” Furmansky said, “but one that dates back to his votes against the Defense of Marriage Act in 1996, when he was one of just a few members of Congress to stand against that heinous legislation.”

Moise praised Mfume’s support of equal marriage rights for same-sex couples.

“That, in and of itself, speaks volumes about his open-mindedness,” she said.

Moise said that Cardin, by comparison, might not represent all that gay Marylanders are seeking.

“I think that people need to take note of what he’s saying about recognition of full marriage equality,” she said, “and decide if they’re comfortable with that position.”

Furmansky indicated that he’d prefer a stronger commitment from Cardin on gay rights.

“I hope that if he makes it to the Senate, he would be more than a vote in our favor,” Furmansky said, “but an advocate who will put himself on the line when it matters most to our community, just as Congressman Mfume has done with regards to equal marriage rights.”

  More candidates, more views

The U.S. senate campaign’s other major candidates, Steele and Zeese, are positioned at opposite ends of the gay rights debate.

Steele, who’s leading a field of 10 people seeking the Republican nomination, opposes gay marriage. He has rallied against same-sex marriage during his tenure as lieutenant governor.

“Marriage defines not only the relationship between a man and a woman, but also their journey through life,” he said in May. “They should not be brow-beaten into thinking something that goes counter to what the people in the community aspire to.”

Steele’s campaign did not respond to the Blade’s requests for comment.

Zeese, the unchallenged Green Party candidate, reiterated his support of equal marriage rights this week. He told the Blade he’d prefer “government not be involved in marriage at all.”

“But the government has intertwined marriage in all sorts of laws, including for things as simple as filing a joint tax return,” he said. “Under these circumstances, the only way to have equal protection of the laws is to allow marriage of all couples.”

Zeese, an activist and former press secretary for Ralph Nader, also said “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” should be ended.

“This homophobic approach to policy needs to end,” he said, “not just in the military, but in all government institutions at all levels of government.”