Brian Brown, president of the National
Organization for Marriage (NOM), has said that Virginia
Representative Denver Riggleman lost his GOP primary because he
supports same-sex marriage.
On Saturday, Riggleman was ousted in a
drive-thru district convention. Bob Good won the support of 58
percent of delegates. Good is a member of the county's Board of
Supervisors and a former athletics director at Liberty University.
Good, a staunch social conservative who ran to Riggleman's right,
secured the endorsement of Liberty University President Jerry
Falwell, Jr.
Last year, Riggleman officiated the
wedding of a gay male couple who volunteered on his campaign.
According to Roll
Call, two county GOP committees voted to censure Riggleman
and a third passed a motion of no confidence over his officiating
duties, views on immigration and other issues.
Local party leaders decided to hold a
convention to determine the nominee rather than a primary election.
Delegates tend to be more in-line with the party than typical primary
voters.
Brown cheered Riggleman's defeat.
“Now Riggleman's career is in
tatters, and supporting gay 'marriage' is the reason why,” Brown
wrote in an email to supporters.
“That is what happens when grassroots
supporters are able to directly express their views. We need to do
more of this. We need to organize, rally, protest and vote for the
issues we care about and for those who stand with us,” he said.
Riggleman has said that his campaign
received reports of “voting irregularities” and “ballot
stuffing” and that the campaign was evaluating its options.
NOM has been working to block marriage
equality for over a decade. Since the Supreme Court's 2015 ruling
that secured same-sex marriage nationwide, NOM has worked to
undermine such unions and expanded its mission to include opposition
to other issues related to LGBT rights.