Former Utah Governor: Same-sex marriage is “inevitable”
“I think that’s inevitable. I think we’re on a pathway.”
Former Utah Governor Jon Hunstman Jr. (R.), reports Salt Lake’s Deseret News. Hunstman, who backed civil unions for same-sex couples during his term as Governor, voiced his continued support for equal marriage, stating “[I’ve] already spoken out why I think it’s the right thing to do to recognize same-sex marriage.” The former Governor, who ran for President in 2012, admits that it won’t happen overnight: “It’s step-by-step and it’s an evolution that, in this case, is taking us somewhere.” His position puts him at odds with current Utah Governor Gary Herbert (R.), who called elected officials refusing to defend the state’s same-sex marriage ban “the next step to anarchy.”
Same-sex marriage was legalized in Utah in December last year after District Judge Robert J. Shelby ruled that the state’s ban was unconstitutional, though marriages were suspended in January by the Supreme Court following an appeal by the state. The 10th Circuit Court upheld the lower court’s ruling in June, though it stayed the implementation of its decision pending an appeal by the state. Last month, Utah’s Attorney General asked the Supreme Court to consider the case. As Hunstman noted, “That’s not to say at the interim you’re not going to have court cases and pretty heated debates. I think that’s just a given.”
Image Credit: Gage Skidmore / Flickr
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