Early voting results show Houston's equal rights ordinance failing, with 62.5 percent of voters opting to repeal the law and 37.5 percent supporting the embattled ordinance.

The Houston Chronicle reports:

Early voting results show Houston's equal rights ordinance failing, with 62.5 percent of voters opting to repeal the law and 37.5 percent supporting the embattled ordinance.

Those results include 134,074 early voting and mail ballots but do not reflect turnout at the polls Tuesday.

The hotly contested election has spurred national attention, drawing comment from the White House and the state's top officials. Largely conservative opponents of the law allege that it would allow men dressed as women, including sexual predators, to enter women's restrooms. Supporters of the law, including Mayor Annise Parker, argue that it extends an important local recourse for a range of protected classes to respond to discrimination.

The ordinance bans discrimination based not just on gender identity and sexual orientation, but also 13 classes already protected under federal law: sex, race, color, ethnicity, national origin, age, religion, disability, pregnancy and genetic information, as well as family, marital or military status.

A difficult night so far for the social justice warriors.