As voters cast their ballots in Virginia, they won’t just be voting for candidates — but also on three potential amendments to the commonwealth’s constitution.
One of the proposed amendments would enshrine marriage equality in Virginia’s constitution and do away with an unenforceable same-sex marriage ban passed in 2006.
Ron Bookbinder and James Fisher, of Arlington, have been together for 38 years. They tied the knot in 2014, but at the time, same-sex marriage was illegal in Virginia because of a constitutional amendment passed by voters in 2006.
“To be legally married at that time, we had to go across the river to the District of Columbia,” Fisher said.
A year later, the U.S. Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage across the U.S.
That made the 2006 Virginia ban unenforceable — but it has remained on the books in in the commonwealth anyway.
Virginia voters will decide whether to officially do away with it.
If passed, Ballot Question 2 would not only remove the ban but also would enshrine in Virginia’s constitution the right of two adults to marry regardless or sex, gender or race.
Bookbinder and Fisher, who are members of Equality Arlington, an LGBTQ+ advocacy group, will be speaking at a rally for marriage equality at Courthouse Plaza in Arlington on Saturday.
“Can you imagine if you were suddenly told you could not be married, and that your marriage was illegal, and that you lose all those rights that you’ve had for years and years?” Bookbinder said.
Fisher said: “With today’s Supreme Court, who knows what would happen? It’s so essential to us that people vote for this amendment because we want our current equal rights of marriage to be enshrined in the constitution.”
‘The kind of commonwealth we want to rear our children in’
Just a couple miles away from Courthouse Plaza, at the Diocese of Arlington, you’ll see signs asking voters to vote no on Question 2. The diocese released a video last month speaking out against Questions 1 and 2. Question 1 addresses abortion.
“They’re not really a battle of right or left, Republican or Democrat; they’re about our vision; they’re about the kind of people we want to be, the kind of commonwealth we want to rear our children in,” Amy McInerny, the Respect Life director of the diocese.
McInerny said the language in Question 2 is vague.
“There’s reason to pause. There’s reason to be concerned and there’s clearly reason to vote no, understanding the status quo will remain the same even if this vote fails,” she said.
The last day to vote early in person in Virginia is Oct. 31. Election Day is Nov. 3.
The third proposed constitutional amendment on the ballot in Virginia would restore the voting rights of convicted felons after they’re released from incarceration. Learn more about all the ballot initiatives in the D.C. area here.
