The launch was announced yesterday at rallies in San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Diego and Fresno.

Organised by Yes! on Equality and TruthandHope.org, in collaboration with Restore Equality 2010, the goal of the Million for a Million campaign is to raise the $1 million necessary to fund getting the more than one million signatures needed to place a marriage equality initiative on the ballot.

However, Equality California, another gay marriage group, has recommended that efforts should be focused on getting the issue on the ballot for 2012 rather than 2010, saying that the battle for hearts and minds can be solidly won within this timeframe.