ChuckD
The Gay Lord of Freestyle
ST. LOUIS, United States (AFP) - Voters in Missouri overwhelmingly approved a proposal to amend the state's constitution to ban gay marriage, in a closely-watched referendum on what is shaping up to be a major social issue this election season.
The proposal had garnered about 70 percent of the votes with 75 percent of precincts reporting, with much of the support coming from conservative rural Missouri, according to the state's secretary of state's office.
The Midwestern state already has laws barring homosexual marriage, but grass-roots activists had lobbied for stronger protection for traditional marriage in the wake of a decision by the Massachusetts Supreme Court late last year that opened the door to same-sex unions in that state.
"People understand we have a wise public policy in Missouri and want to protect traditional marriage from possible legal challenges. People don't want to see in Missouri what happened in Massachusetts."
:angered :sosad :angered :sosad
The proposal had garnered about 70 percent of the votes with 75 percent of precincts reporting, with much of the support coming from conservative rural Missouri, according to the state's secretary of state's office.
The Midwestern state already has laws barring homosexual marriage, but grass-roots activists had lobbied for stronger protection for traditional marriage in the wake of a decision by the Massachusetts Supreme Court late last year that opened the door to same-sex unions in that state.
"People understand we have a wise public policy in Missouri and want to protect traditional marriage from possible legal challenges. People don't want to see in Missouri what happened in Massachusetts."
:angered :sosad :angered :sosad