Three states passed ballot initiatives aimed at protecting same-sex marriage
WASHINGTON - Voters in three states passed ballot measures that would amend language in their state’s Constitution to protect same-sex marriage.
Same-sex marriage is currently legal in all states and the District of Columbia through the landmark 2015 ruling Obergefell v. Hodges.
But activists, concerned about the power of the Supreme Court after the fall of Roe v. Wade in 2022, have taken proactive measures at the polls this year.
In California, voters weighed in on a measure that would repeal a previous proposition defining marriage as a union between a man and a woman. It would recognize the fundamental right to marry in the Constitution.
Colorado had similar measures on the ballot aimed at removing antiquated language in the state’s Constitution that prohibits same-sex marriage.
And voters in Hawaii passed a measure that would amend the state Constitution to repeal the legislature's authority to "reserve marriage to opposite-sex couples."
Before same-sex marriage became legalized nationally, efforts to legalize the practice popped up in the 1990’s, according to Human Rights Campaign, an LGBTQ advocacy group. But the 2015 ruling struck down same-sex marriage bans in 13 states.
Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan warned in a September interview with the New York Times she thinks gay marriage and contraception are under threat after the Roe v. Wade decision.