Democrats in the Virginia General Assembly narrowly passed a bill that would protect same-sex marriage in the commonwealth in the event the U.S. Supreme Court overturns Obergefell v. Hodges, which effectively legalized same-sex unions throughout the country in 2015.
HB 174 seeks to amend Virginia law to declare that “no person authorized” to “issue a marriage license shall deny the issuance of such license to two parties contemplating a lawful marriage on the basis of sex, gender, or race of such parties” with an exception for religious organizations and clergy members, who “shall have the right to refuse to perform any marriage.”
A summary for the bill notes it would also require such marriages “be recognized in the Commonwealth regardless of the sex, gender, or race of the parties.”
The bill passed the Virginia House of Delegates with 54 votes in favor and 40 against, with five lawmakers not voting and Delegate Otto Waschsmann (R-Stony Creek) abstaining from the vote.
In the Virginia Senate, the bill passed by a narrower margin, with 22 votes in favor and 17 votes against. State Senator Richard Stuart (R-Montross) did not vote on the legislation.
The bill now heads to Governor Glenn Youngkin, who said in 2022 that Virginia protects same-sex marriage rights but could veto the legislation.
With some Democrats concerned about Youngkin’s ability to veto a bill, earlier in the legislative session, lawmakers announced an effort to create a new amendment that would enshrine same-sex marriage into the Virginia Constitution. That effort was ultimately carried into 2025 without any decisions by the Committee on Privileges and Elections.
Though the bill was passed by Democrats in the Virginia General Assembly, it can be vetoed by Youngkin, while the governor cannot officially act to stop a constitutional amendment. However, the amendment process in Virginia would require both the House and Senate to approve it, plus the support of Virginia voters in a referendum, for two straight years.
Liberty Counsel, an attorney-led Christian ministry, previously claimed such legislation could pave the way for litigation leading to the overturning of Obergefell after Democrats successfully passed the Respect for Marriage Act in late 2022 as they prepared to cede control of the U.S. House to the Republican Party.
“Until the passage of the ‘Respect for Marriage Act,’ the biggest hurdle to overturning Obergefell was not on the law but on policy,” Liberty Counsel explained in 2022. “Obergefell, like Roe v. Wade, has no support in the Constitution. Like Roe, Obergefell was ‘egregiously wrong from the start.’”
The group added, “Three of the five Justices in the slim Obergefell majority are no longer on the Court – Kennedy, Breyer, and Ginsburg. Chief Justice John Roberts issued a stinging dissent, as did Justices Thomas and Alito. Justices Gorsuch, Kavanaugh, Barrett, and Jackson have since joined the High Court. Therefore, the slim majority in 2015 is now gone.”
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Tom Pappert is the lead reporter for The Tennessee Star, and also reports for The Georgia Star News, The Virginia Star, and The Arizona Sun Times. Follow Tom on X/Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
