COLUMBUS, Ohio – On the same day when a judge is expected to strike down part of Ohio’s gay marriage ban, backers of a constitutional amendment repealing the ban have taken a step closer to getting the measure on the ballot, though probably not this year.
Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine’s office today ruled that supports of the proposed Freedom to Marry and Religious Freedom Amendment have submitted the required 1,000 valid petition signatures and a summary of the amendment that has been determined to be “fair and truthful.”
The language represents a reworking of the original amendment intrended to increase support among the various groups representing the gay-lesbian-transgender community in Ohio.
It strikes a section of the state constitution that considers only marriages between men and women to be valid and inserts language that allows marriage between “consenting adults regardless of gender.” It grants churches the right to decide whom to marry, but the revised version includes a provision that gives churches and their clergy the right to refuse to perform a marriage.
“We found that language struck the best balance, we think that’s what voters in Ohio will support,” says Ian James, founder of FreedomOhio PAC, which is backing the ballot issue.
Some feared that the original language was too vague and could result in lengthy legal challenges from church-affiliated institutions, such as hospitals.
The state Ballot Board still must determine if the amendment contains a single or multiple issues, then supporters must collect 385,245 more valid petition signatures to have the proposal placed before voters.
James says the petition will probably not be on the statewide ballot this year.
FreedomOhio will conduct polls over the next few months to see if voters are more inclined to support the old or revised versions of the amendment, he said.
Federal judge Timothy Black in Cincinnati ruled Monday that Ohio should recognize marriages performed legally in other states, though his ruling will not force the state to allow same-sex marriages to be performed.