Louisiana Senator Mary Landrieu has
said she personally backs gay marriage but is obliged to represent the
views of her constituents.
Landrieu is among the final four
Democratic senators who remain opposed to marriage equality after a
flurry of senators shifted their public stance in recent weeks. The
other three holdouts are Mark Pryor of Arkansas, Joe Manchin of West
Virginia and Tim Johnson of South Dakota.
In
comments to CNN, Landrieu said she personally believes “people
should love who they love and marry who they want to marry,” but
that her obligation is to the people of Louisiana who elected her to
Congress.
“My state has a very strong
constitutional amendment not only against gay marriage but against
gay partnerships,” she said. “So I'm looking at the people of
Louisiana trying to represent their interests.”
On Thursday, Florida Senator
Bill Nelson said that he could not discriminate against gays
because “The Lord made homosexuals as well as heterosexuals.”
The following day, Indiana Senator
Joe Donnelly said that backing the institution was “the right
thing to do” and North Dakota Senator
Heidi Heitkamp said that the “importance of family is enduring”
in announcing her support.
Fifty-three senators support marriage
equality, including two GOP senators: Rob Portman of Ohio and Mark
Kirk of Illinois.