In a surprise move, the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Political Alliance of Massachusetts came to a split decision in its gubernatorial endorsement. After two hours of debate and three ballots, the group decided to give its backing to both Senate president Tom Birmingham and Treasurer Shannon O’Brien. (A two-thirds vote is required for any endorsement.)

Getting endorsements from groups, such as the Alliance, is a key part of any candidate’s efforts heading into a primary, where activists do double duty as voters and volunteers on Election Day. By choosing Birmingham and O’Brien over former secretary of labor Robert Reich, who is the only candidate in the race to support full marriage rights for gay and lesbian couples, the Alliance demonstrated a preference for elected officials who have already shown a commitment to civil rights. The endorsement for Birmingham, for example, was helped along by the Senate president’s recent legislative maneuver of convening and then quickly closing a constitutional convention, effectively killing an anti-gay-marriage constitutional amendment. The support for O’Brien, in turn, reflected both her strong responses to the Alliance’s questionnaire and the widely held belief that she stands the best chance of beating Republican Mitt Romney in November.

" In any other state, any one of these people would be fantastic, " says Alliance spokesperson Jeremy Pittman, referring to the four Democratic candidates, including former Watertown state senator Warren Tolman. " This is clearly the most gay-friendly slate of candidates we’ve had in many, many years. " Regarding the group’s endorsement of Birmingham — whose gubernatorial effort has been flagging recently — Pittman says, " There was a belief among our members that he deserves our support for taking the stand he did during the constitutional convention. You can’t turn your back on people who make the tough call. Our members were clearly wanting to send a message that we see it as a heroic last stand in defense of our civil rights. "

The group made no endorsement in the lieutenant-governor race among Peabody representative John Slattery, businessman Chris Gabrieli, and former Newton state senator Lois Pines. In the treasurer’s race, the Alliance backed State Representative Michael Cahill of Beverly, who fought against the anti-gay-marriage bill and who wants to increase Treasury conferences aimed at addressing gay and lesbian financial concerns. (Cahill’s brother, Sean, is the former chair of the group and now works for the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force.)

In other endorsement news, OutSomerville, a Somerville-based gay political-action committee (PAC) that recently endorsed Reich (with the help of Reich’s campaign spokeswoman, Dorie Clark, who founded the group) declined to make an endorsement in the heated state-senator race between Cambridge City Councilor Anthony Galluccio and openly gay state representative Jarrett Barrios; a third candidate, Carlo DeMaria of Everett, did not seek the endorsement. Neither candidate could garner the two-thirds support necessary for an endorsement — and, unlike the Alliance, OutSomerville declined to endorse two candidates. " They’re both very good, " says Mike Sullivan, the chair of the PAC, noting that Barrios has a clear record on gay rights from his service in the House. " I thank Jarrett immensely for everything he’s done, " he adds. " I guess I don’t view our endorsement as a thank-you for past accomplishments. "