Gay Marriage Battleground In Ohio

            After President Obama declared his support for gay marriage, it seems as if the issue has been arising all over America.  The latest news in the fight for gay rights is taking place in Ohio.  On May 25, 2012 the Ohio state Supreme Court dismissed a challenge to a referendum that would effectively legalize gay marriage within the state.  The state constitutionally banned gay marriage via referendum in 2004, but gay rights groups are now bringing the issue back to the forefront. 

            In 2004 the Ohio Campaign to Protect Marriage spearheaded a movement to define marriage as a union between one man and one woman.  The referendum put forth by the organization also required the state to not recognize civil unions or domestic partnerships as equal to marriage, thus barring any committed gay couple from receiving any spousal benefits that married couples may be entitled to.  The measure was passed by 62% of the vote, and an amendment was added to Ohio’s constitution stating “Only a union between one man and one woman may be a marriage valid in or recognized by this state and its political subdivisions.”  [http://www.legislature.state.oh.us/constitution.cfm?Part=15&Section=11]

            The 2004 referendum has been law for close to a decade, but gay rights activists have now brought the law back to the forefront of Ohio politics.  In April 2012 a petition for a proposed amendment referred to as “The Freedom to Marry and Religious Freedom Amendment” was certified by Ohio’s Attorney General, Mike DeWine.  The certification does not change the constitution; it only verifies that 1,000 registered Ohio voters have signed off on the petition and that the petition is a “fair and truthful” summary of the amendment being proposed.  DeWine wrote to the petitioners “Without passing on the advisability of the approval or rejection of the measure to be referred… I hereby certify that the summary is a fair and truthful statement of the proposed constitutional amendment.” 

            DeWine signing off on this petition does not necessarily reflect his own personal views.  His spokesperson Lisa Hackley stated that “the attorney general believes that marriage is between a man and a woman”, but that as attorney general he is unable to let his personal opinions interfere with the law.  The group that spearheaded the initial 2004 referendum that outlawed gay marriage did not take his approval of the petition lying down. 

            The Ohio Campaign to Protect Marriage filed a complaint with the Ohio Supreme Court asking it to invalidate DeWine’s previous approval of the petition for the constitutional amendment.  The organization tried every tactic imaginable when filing their complaint, even bringing up the definition of the word “summary” to say that the petition was too long to be considered one.  The organization also stated the language used “is not a fair and truthful statement of the proposed constitutional amendment”.  [ http://www.sconet.state.oh.us/tempx/705491.pdf

            Attorney General DeWine proceeded to present a motion to dismiss the case on April 27.  Court documents show that DeWine argued that the court had no jurisdiction over the pre-petition process that gay right leaders were going through.  DeWine claimed the court only had jurisdiction over “the petition process, which is a separate process that only begins after completion of the statutory pre-petition process”.  The court agreed and dismissed the case on May 25th with a vote of 5-2, with judges O’Donnell and Cupp dissenting. 

            The Ohio Campaign to Protect Marriage made every attempt to block the approval of the Freedom to Marry amendment and lost, but they still may get their way in the end.  DeWine’s approval only gives gay rights leaders the right to formally start a petition to have the referendum included on the next ballot.  To do this the petitioners would have to obtain signatures from at least 44 of the 88 counties in Ohio.  In these 44 counties, the petitioners must obtain signatures equal to at least 5 percent of the votes cast in that specific county for governor in the most recent gubernatorial election.  After all signatures are collected, the total amount must also be equal to or greater than 10 percent of the total votes cast throughout the state in the last gubernatorial election.  [ http://www.ohioattorneygeneral.gov/Legal/Ballot-Initiatives/Initiative-a... ]

            Even if the petitioners are able to garner all of these signatures, the issue would still have to be put forward to the electorate, who were the initial voters that outlawed gay marriage eight years ago.  If the referendum passes, then the language that outlaws gay marriage in Article XV, Section 11 of the Ohio constitution would be changed to “marriage shall be a union of two consenting adults not nearer of kin than second cousins, and not having a husband or wife living, and no religious institution shall be required to perform or recognize a marriage.”  This would allow gay couples to get married within the state and start receiving the benefits that married couples receive. 

            The referendum of 2004 that banned gay marriage left numerous questions to be asked.  One such question was the issue of domestic violence.  The language in Ohio’s domestic violence laws includes current and former spouses, parents, minors, or common law partners.  [ https://www.freelegalaid.com/nav/ohio/divorce-and-family-law/article/ohi... ]  The lack of recognition of any type of gay union left this issue in a gray area.  Issues like this will easily be resolved if the referendum passes. 

            It is currently hard to predict the chances of the referendum passing.  Since the electorate did decide to outlaw gay marriage in 2004, it is hard to believe that they would’ve changed their minds so drastically in eight years.  Recent polls, however, show that for the first time in history, a majority of Americans approve of gay marriage (51%) while a minority (45%) disapproves.  These numbers may or may not be reflected in the vote, but if gay rights activists are successful in garnering enough signatures, Ohio voters will have a second chance to voice their opinions on gay marriage.