Part of the LGBT rights series |
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Same-sex marriage has been legal in Virginia since October 6, 2014, following the decision of the U.S. Supreme Court not to hear an appeal of the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals' ruling in Bostic v. Schaefer. Same-sex marriages subsequently began at 1:00 p.m. on October 6 after the Fourth Circuit issued its mandate, and since then Virginia has performed legal marriages of same-sex couples and recognized out-of-state same-sex marriages.[1][2] Previously, the state had passed a statute prohibiting same-sex marriage in 1975, and further restrictions were added in 1997 and 2004, which made "void and unenforceable" any arrangements between same-sex couples bestowing the "privileges or obligations of marriage". Voters approved an amendment to the Constitution of Virginia reinforcing the existing laws in 2006. On January 14, 2014, a U.S. district court judge ruled in Bostic that Virginia's statutory and constitutional ban on the state recognition of same-sex marriages were unconstitutional, a decision upheld by the Fourth Circuit on July 28, 2014.
The Virginia General Assembly repealed the statute ban on same-sex marriages in 2020. In 2022, the Republican-controlled House of Delegates rejected a proposed constitutional amendment to repeal the constitutional ban, despite popular public support. A 2021 poll conducted by the Public Religion Research Institute showed that 71% of Virginians supported same-sex marriage.[3] Same-sex marriage is supported by both of the state's senators, Democrats Mark Warner and Tim Kaine.[4][5]