For Immediate Release
Wednesday, July 20, 2022
Contact: Aida Ross, aross@azdem.org
Arizona Republicans in Congress Vote Against Protecting Right of Every Arizonan to Get Married
House Republicans today voted against a bill that would enshrine protections for gay marriage after a Supreme Court opinion signaled marriage equality rights could be at risk
Yesterday, all four Arizona House Republicans voted against the Respect for Marriage Act, which would enshrine marriage equality in federal law, repeal the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), and provide additional protections for marriage equality.
“After a conservative Supreme Court opinion paved the way for Republican lawmakers to make abortion illegal, conservative justices signaled that same-sex marriage could be targeted next. It’s appalling that yesterday, all four Arizona House Republicans voted against legislation to protect marriage equality — making it clear that extremist Republicans are following through on that target,” said Arizona Democratic Party Spokesperson Aida Ross. “While Democrats have once again voted to protect Arizonans’ rights, many Republicans are actively trying to make it possible to take away our freedoms – whether that’s the freedom to marry the person you love or the freedom to make your own health care decisions.”
Yesterday’s vote on the Respect for Marriage Act follows the Supreme Court’s decision to ignore 50 years of precedent to overturn Roe v. Wade and allow states to outlaw abortion, and potentially target other rights, such as the right to same sex-marriage and the right to contraception. Despite these clear threats to Arizonans’ fundamental rights, all Arizona House Republicans and 157 total Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives voted against legislation to protect marriage equality from conservative judges, just weeks after all Arizona House Republicans voted against bills to protect abortion rights and prevent states from penalizing women for traveling across state lines to access health care.
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