Fifty-six Republican members of the
Iowa House have joined an effort to end gay marriage in the state.
The effort to put a question on the
2013 ballot that would define marriage in the Iowa Constitution as a
heterosexual union – and thereby reverse the 2009 Iowa Supreme
Court ruling that brought gay marriage to the Midwest – is expected
to win committee approval as soon as next week.
“I don't think we'll dawdle,” House
Speaker Kraig Paulsen, a Republican, told ABC affiliate KCRG in
reference to when the measure is likely reach the floor for a vote.
Fifty-one votes are needed for passage
in the chamber and supporters claim all 60 Republicans will likely
vote for the measure, which has little – if any – support among
Democrats.
A similar resolution, however, faces a
much steeper incline in the Democrat-controlled Senate, where
Majority Leader Michael Gronstal has vowed to block the measure from
reaching the floor.
Governor Terry Branstad has previously
called Gronstal a “dictator” for his opposition.
“Just because you're a leader in the
Legislature, doesn't mean you're a dictator,” Branstad said, a
clear reference to Gronstal.
Republicans increased their numbers in
the Legislature and took over the Governor's Mansion on November 2.
Voters
also ousted three out of the seven Iowa Supreme Court justices who
unanimously legalized gay marriage.