FreedomOhio, the group working on a
ballot initiative to repeal Ohio's ban on gay marriage, announced
Friday that it is placing its initiative on hold.
FreedomOhio will “hold its original
petition for marriage equality in a state of readiness for filing,
while collecting signatures on a new petition with revised language,”
the group said in a statement.
Explaining that it wanted to “ensure
that the right language is placed on the ballot at the right time,”
the group said it will “continue to work with in-state LGBT groups
and allies.”
“Over the coming months, FreedomOhio
will also utilize extensive polling on both the existing and the new
petitions to guarantee that voters will ultimately see the best
possible language on the ballot.”
Several LGBT groups, including Equality
Ohio, had balked at FreedomOhio's plans to put the initiative on the
2014 ballot, saying they would pursue an educational campaign on the
issue first.
“FreedomOhio supports the efforts
educating Ohio voters about why marriage equality matters,” said
Ian James, the group's executive director and co-founder. “We've
been listening to in-state LGBT groups and allies, and we've found
that our adjusted language provides a pathway to consensus.”
The announcement came on the same day
that a federal judge said he would release a ruling within the next
ten days forcing Ohio officials to recognize the out-of-state
marriages of gay and lesbian couples. It was uncertain whether the
ruling had influenced FreedomOhio's decision.
(Related: Federal
judge says he'll order Ohio to recognize gay marriages.)
FreedomOhio said it will also begin
working on an initiative aimed at prohibiting discrimination in the
areas of employment and housing on the basis of sexual orientation
and gender identity. The group will collect the 116,000 valid
signatures needed to submit a proposed law to the Ohio General
Assembly.
Lawmakers have 4 months to act on such
requests before petitioners can circulate additional petitions to
reach the ballot box.
Ohio's Republican-controlled General
Assembly has repeatedly rejected similar bills introduced by
Democratic lawmakers.