WHY VOTE YES
How Did We Get Here?
Currently, the Hawaiʻi State Constitution grants the Legislature the authority to reserve marriage to opposite-sex couples. This authority was granted to them in 1998 when voters overwhelmingly approved language to be added to the State Constitution:
​Article 1, Section 23: The legislature shall have the power to reserve marriage to opposite-sex couples.​
We believe it is long past time this discriminatory language be removed.The Hawaiʻi State Legislature passed the "Hawaiʻi Marriage Equality Act" in 2013, which recognizes marriages between individuals of the same sex and extends the same rights, benefits, protections, and responsibilities of marriage that opposite-sex couples receive.​
In addition to the approval of same-sex marriage in 2013, the Hawaiʻi State Supreme Court, in 1996, the State failed to prove a compelling reason to deny marriage licenses to same-sex couples and the court ruled doing so violates Article 1, Section 5 of the Hawaiʻi State Constitution.
Timeline
Why Do We Need This Change Now?
Blank Votes = "No" Votes
The political landscape has changed dramatically since Section 23 was approved in 1998. Recent polling suggests as much as 80% of the public supports the repeal.
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However, low voter turnout and confusion are big hurdles to our potential success.
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We need to make sure everyone who casts a ballot in November votes "YES" to question #1:
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"Shall the state constitution be amended to repeal the legislature's authority to reserve marriage to opposite-sex couples?"
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In addition to any votes against the repeal, state law says blank votes will be counted as "no" votes.
Across the country, LGBTQ+ rights are under assault. While no such threat currently exists in Hawaiʻi, this 26-year old language keeps the door open for the repeal of same-sex marriage in Hawaiʻi.
Recent rulings by the U.S. Supreme Court have raised the specter for the potential reversal of the court's prior ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges, which legalized same-sex marriage nationwide.
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To protect access to marriage for the LGBTQIA+ community in Hawaiʻi, we believe it is critically important to repeal Article 1, Section 23.
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The legislature overwhelmingly agrees. The bill to put the question on the ballot was approved 24-1 in the Senate and 43-6 in the House (2 were excused).
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Similar efforts are underway in California and Colorado.
