Affirmation: Gay & Lesbian Mormons

Mormons in the House of Representatives Vote for Discrimination
Tom Udall Casts Lone Dissenting Vote

The Mormon Vote in the House

Rob Bishop: Yes
Chris Cannon: Yes
Jim Matheson: Yes
Mike Simpson: Yes
John Doolittle: Yes
Wally Herger : Yes
Buck McKeon: Yes
Jeff Flake: Yes
Ernest Istook: Yes
Tom Udall: No

See Full House Vote

by Lisa Hansen
July 2006

The U.S. House of Representatives on Tuesday rejected a proposed constitutional amendment to write discrimination into the U.S. Constitution, ending for another year a congressional debate that supporters of the amendment hope will still reverberate in this fall's midterm elections. Utah's three representatives, all Mormon, voted on the side of discrimination, along with fellow Mormons John Doolittle (R-California), Ernest Istook (R-Oklahoma), Wally Herger (R-California), Buck McKeon (R-California), and Mike Simpson (R-Idaho). The dissenting Mormon vote came from Rep. Tom Udall (D-New Mexico), who voted against the amendment.

Overall, the 236-187 vote for the proposal to define marriage as the union of a man and a woman came 47 short of the two-thirds majority needed to advance a constitutional amendment. This followed six weeks after the Senate also decisively defeated the amendment.

Utah Rep. Jim Matheson, a Democrat from Utah's largely Republican 2nd Congressional District, voted for the amendment, as he has done in the past. He was one of 34 Democrats to vote in favor of the measure.

"I have always defined marriage as between a man and a woman. I believe this federal amendment is the best option available to Congress to uphold traditional marriage," Matheson said in a statement.

Utah Republican Reps. Chris Cannon and Rob Bishop also voted for the amendment. Bishop called marriage between a man and a woman the "basic institution in our society, and I am committed to its preservation."

"Amending the Constitution is a serious matter, but the family and the fabric of our society are worth defending, so I supported this proposed amendment," Bishop said.

Cannon concurred. "Though I have great reservations about amending the U.S. Constitution, an amendment is our last resort to reign in an unchecked judiciary," Cannon said.