Blue States Succeed In Stripping Defunct Definitions Of Marriage From The Books
California and Colorado have successfully stripped definitions of marriage from state law, repealing same-sex marriage bans that have not been in effect for nearly a decade. Californians are poised to pass Proposition 3…
California and Colorado have successfully stripped definitions of marriage from state law, repealing same-sex marriage bans that have not been in effect for nearly a decade.
Californians are poised to pass Proposition 3, according to the New York Times, guaranteeing a constitutional right to marriage between same-sex couples and striking down Proposition 8, a previous law passed in 2010 banning same-sex marriage in the state. Colorado is poised to pass Amendment J, according to the NYT, striking similar language from the state’s constitution prohibiting the act.
Same-sex marriage bans have not been enforced since the Supreme Court found a constitutional right to marriage for all in 2015 through the Obergefell v. Hodges decision, though language banning the act remained on the books in some states despite being unenforceable. The passing of Prop 3 in California and Amendment J in Colorado means dormant language banning same-sex marriage will be officially removed from the law.
“We’ve always known that at some point we need to get this discriminatory provision out of the California constitution,” said Democratic California state Sen. Scott Wiener, a co-author of Prop 3,