Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty says he's OK with gay marriage foes' campaign to oust three Iowa Supreme Court judges off the bench, the AP reported.

Pawlenty, who was on his fourth trip to Iowa since announcing he was not seeking a third term as governor, said the Iowa Constitution allows voters to oust judges they don't like.

“It's the right and privilege of the citizens of this state and my state to weigh in on whether they like or don't like the job that a judge is doing and to agree or disagree with him,” he told the AP.

Former gubernatorial candidate Bob Vander Plaats, a Republican, recently announced that he'll work to oust three of the seven judges who unanimously legalized gay marriage in Iowa last year. Voters will decide in November whether to keep Chief Justice Marsha Ternus and Justices David Baker and Michael Streit. The remaining judges are not on the ballot this year.

Vander Plaats said a federal judge's ruling that declared California's gay marriage ban unconstitutional motivated him to act.

“If the judges can do this to marriage, every one of your freedoms is up for grabs,” he said in announcing his plans.

Pawlenty also said he does not like judges “inserting their personal views to change” the definition of marriage.

In May, Pawlenty voted a bill that would have allowed gay couples to control the remains of a loved one. “I oppose efforts to treat domestic relationships as the equivalent of traditional marriage,” he said in opposing the bill.

Analysts say Pawlenty's frequent visits to Iowa suggest he's considering a run for the Republican presidential nomination in 2012.