Abortion, gay marriage: 4 constitutional amendments approved by Virginia Legislature

2. Establishing a right to same-sex marriage

The Virginia House of Delegates passed House Joint Resolution 3 in a 67-31 vote on Jan. 14, while the Virginia Senate approved it in a 26-13 vote on Jan. 16. The measure achieved some degree of bipartisan support, with all House Democrats and three House Republicans voting in favor of it along with all Senate Democrats and five Senate Republicans.

The measure removes the unenforced definition of marriage in the Virginia Bill of Rights, identifying it as “only a union between one man and one woman,” replacing it with language describing marriage as “one of the vital personal rights essential to the orderly pursuit of happiness.” It prohibits the state and its political subdivisions from denying “the issuance of a marriage license to two adult persons seeking a lawful marriage on the basis of the sex, gender, or race of such persons.” 

The proposed constitutional amendment also requires the state and its subdivisions to “recognize any lawful marriage between two adult persons and treat such marriages equally under the law, regardless of the sex, gender, or race of such persons.” Same-sex marriages are already legal and recognized in Virginia after the U.S. Supreme Court’s Obergefell v. Hodges decision struck down all state bans on same-sex marriage. 

The proposed constitutional amendment has been approved by Virginia legislators in two consecutive legislative sessions, paving the way for it to go before voters on the ballot this fall.