Support for a gay marriage law in Iowa
is increasing as conservative Republicans near a goal of taking back
control of the Legislature in the November elections.
Gay marriage celebrated its third
anniversary in Iowa on April 3, the date the Iowa Supreme Court
handed down its unanimous decision legalizing such unions. Since
then, heated social conservatives have successfully campaigned to
oust three justices from the bench and the Republican-led House last
year approved a constitutional amendment which would define marriage
as a heterosexual union.
Democrats in the Senate blocked the
amendment from consideration.
But even as opponents overcome one
hurdle – control of the Senate – a new one has emerged: time.
“People are getting comfortable with
it and that's a shame to tell you the truth,” Susan Geddes, a
social conservative organizer, told
the AP.
The issue, evangelical leaders said, is
less prominent now in conservative campaigns.
Geddes said internal polls show support
for overturning gay marriage has plummeted. Less than 10 percent of
Republican voters consider the issue a high priority.
According to a Des Moines Register
poll released in February, already a majority (56%) of Iowans oppose
an amendment banning gay marriage.
The earliest a ballot measure could
reach the ballot box is 2015.