A Scottsdale man has launched the first
steps to putting an initiative repealing Arizona's gay marriage ban
on the 2014 ballot.
Tanner Pritts, a 22-year-old registered
Republican who voted for Mitt Romney, has formed Arizona Advocates
for Marriage Equality, a group which will advocate for repeal of the
state's 2008 voter-approved constitutional amendment defining
marriage as a heterosexual union. The measure won with an
overwhelming approval, 56% to 43%.
According to Capital
Media Services, Pritts has already filed paperwork with the state
to begin his campaign.
Pritts said he was buoyed by marriage
equality wins in four states where it was on the ballot.
“Obviously, we believe the
demographics of the nation are changing,” he said. “We feel that
Arizona is, too. And we think we have a shot.”
To qualify for the ballot, Pritts needs
to gather more than a quarter million valid signatures by July of
2014.
According to a May, 2012 Public
Policy Polling survey, 39 percent of Arizona voters believe gay
and lesbian couples should be allowed to legally marry, while 38
percent said they should be allowed to form civil unions but not
marry. Twenty-one percent of respondents said there should be no
legal recognition of a gay couple's relationship.