Time for some serious stuff. Have you made up your mind on who to vote for? It’s said that as long as you choose a Democrat, we’ll be fine for gay rights. But just how exactly do the candidates stand on LGBT issues? The devil is in the details. Here’s a quick rundown.

Hillary Clinton

Federal Marriage Amendment: Hillary Clinton voted against the amendment, which would have defined marriage as between a man and a woman, and included language which could have prevented recognition of civil unions and domestic partnership benefits. The amendment failed by a vote of 49-48.

Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell: Hillary Clinton supports the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” and supports the rights of gays and lesbians to serve openly in the military. In a statement, she said “It hurts all of our troops, and this, to me, is a matter of national security.”

Discrimination: Clinton said she would work to pass a federal law outlawing employment discrimination based on sexual orientation and propose another measure extending benefits to the partners of federal employees.

Hate Crimes and HIV Support: Hillary Clinton co-sponsored legislation to bring Medicaid coverage to low-income, HIV-positive Americans and the Local Law Enforcement Enhancement Act which would expand federal jurisdiction to reach serious, violent hate crimes perpetrated because of the actual or perceived race, color, religion, national origin, sexual orientation or disability of the victim.

Gay Immigration Rights: Hillary Clinton did not co-sponsor Uniting American Families Act that would amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to provide same-sex partners of U.S. citizens the same immigration benefits legal spouses of U.S. residents enjoy.

Gay Adoption: Hillary Clinton supports giving gays and lesbians equal rights in adopting children.

Same-sex Marriage: Clinton opposes gay marriage but supports civil unions between members of the same sex. During Bill Clinton’s term, she supported the Defense of Marriage Act, a law preventing the federal recognition of same-sex marriage.

“Marriage has got historic, religious and moral content that goes back to the beginning of time, and I think a marriage is as a marriage always has been, between a man and a woman.” - Hillary Clinton, opposing same-sex marriages, quoted in The New York Daily News.

However, in October 2006 Hillary Clinton was quoted by 365gay.com as saying,“I believe in full equality of benefits, nothing left out. From my perspective there is a greater likelihood of us getting to that point in civil unions or domestic partnerships and that is my very considered assessment.”

Barack Obama

Federal Marriage Amendment: Obama voted against a Federal Marriage Amendment, and opposed the Defense of Marriage Act in 1996.

Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell: Obama believes we need to repeal the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy and allow gays and lesbians to serve openly in the military. His campaign literature says, “The key test for military service should be patriotism, a sense of duty, and a willingness to serve.”

Hate Crimes: Barack Obama co-sponsored legislation to expand federal hate crimes laws to include crimes perpetrated because of sexual orientation and gender identity.

Discrimination: Barack Obama supports the Employment Non-Discrimination Act and believes it should be expanded to include sexual orientation and gender identity.

Gay Adoption: Barack Obama believes gays and lesbians should have the same rights to adopt children as heterosexuals.

Same-sex Marriage: Although Barack Obama has said that he supports civil unions, he is against gay marriage. In an interview with the Chicago Daily Tribune, Obama said, “I’m a Christian. And so, although I try not to have my religious beliefs dominate or determine my political views on this issue, I do believe that tradition, and my religious beliefs say that marriage is something sanctified between a man and a woman.”

He said he would support civil unions between gay and lesbian couples, as well as letting individual states determine if marriage between gay and lesbian couples should be legalized.

“Giving them a set of basic rights would allow them to experience their relationship and live their lives in a way that doesn’t cause discrimination,” Obama said. “I think it is the right balance to strike in this society.”

John Edwards

Federal Marriage Amendment: Edwards was against the amendment and supports the repeal of the Defense of Marriage Act.

Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell: Edwards supports the rights of gays, lesbians and bisexuals to serve openly in the United States Military. He says, “The military ought to treat all service members equally and in a way that promotes national security, without regard to sexual orientation.”

Discrimination: Edwards supports a federal bill that would outlaw job discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity. John Edwards say, “Workers should be judged by the quality of their performance, not their sexual orientation or gender identity.” He co-sponsored the Employment Non-Discrimination Act.

Hate Crimes: Edwards supports expanding federal Hate Crimes Law to include sexual orientation. John Edwards says, “Everyone is entitled to live in dignity without fear of violence.” While in office, John Edwards co-sponsored legislation to give law enforcement agencies the tools they need to investigate and prosecute hate crimes.

Same-sex Marriage: Edwards opposes same-sex marriage, opting to have each state decide on the issue. However, he does not think the Constitution should be amended to define marriage as between a man and a woman. He supports civil unions.

Gay Immigration: Edwards is undecided on legislation that would allow American citizens to sponsor their same-sex partners for immigration into the country.

Gay Adoption: Edwards supports giving same-sex couples the same rights to adopt children as heterosexual couples. He also says both members of a same-sex couple should be able to form a legal relationship with their children.

Compiled from About.com

UPDATE: Campaign spokeswoman Colleen Murray has just confirmed that John Edwards has dropped out of the presidential race, according to Agence France-Presse. Because of this, I see the fight intensifying even more between Clinton and Obama, but I do hope it won’t so toxic as to turn off staunch Democrat supporters from both candidates. I’d hate to see John McCain slipping past them into the White House.