A New York senator has been bombarded with letters calling for the legalisation of same-sex marriage after Lady GaGa rallied fans at a recent concert to lobby for the cause.
The Paparazzi hitmaker and equal rights campaigner urged concertgoers at a show in Buffalo, New York on Friday (04Mar11) to protest against State Senator Mark Grisanti's stance opposing plans to make gay marriage legal.
The pop superstar also took to her Twitter.com and Facebook.com pages to solicit support for gay rights and encourage fans around the world to express their thoughts to Grisanti, a native of Buffalo.
Her ploy worked, and the politician's office was inundated with emails from concerned campaigners and fans of the outspoken singer - estimates suggest he received more than 600 messages by Monday (07Mar11) - more than six times the usual volume of correspondence.
The publicity boost prompted Grisanti's chief of staff, Doug Curella, to take the unusual move and issue a statement addressing Gaga's influence over her New York fan base.
He says, "Lady Gaga is a terrific world-renowned performer, entitled to her opinion. That is why our country is so great, because you have the opportunity to have your voice be heard and reach out to your local representatives."
And Gaga's call appears to have been heard by Grisanti - Curella claims the politician is endeavouring to reply to each and every email he received.
Gaga has previously used her pop power to force U.S. politicians repeal the military's controversial Don't Ask, Don't Tell policy, which banned gay soldiers from serving openly in the armed forces. Her efforts helped to convince lawmakers to repeal the ruling in December (10).