With President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration just over a month away, the LGBTQ+ community worries that their right to marry could be overturned. Now, same-sex couples across the U.S. are rushing to the alter to make their unions official before Trump takes office.
However, the president-elect has not indicated that he intends to roll back the legalization of gay marriage or that he would support any efforts to do so.
The Supreme Court ruled same-sex marriage constitutional nearly a decade ago, making same-sex marriage legal in all 50 states. The 2015 Obergefell v. Hodges case cemented certain marriage benefits for gay couples, including access to health insurance under their spouse, property rights and tax benefits.
Trump’s stance on the issue of same-sex marriage hasn’t been consistent. He previously said he believed in traditional marriage but also said same-sex marriage was “settled” by the Supreme Court. Trump did not focus on the issue during his latest campaign.
During Trump’s first term as president, he appointed three conservative justices to the Supreme Court.
When the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June 2022, eliminating the federal right to abortion and returning the issue to the states, fear rose that same-sex marriage could targeted next.
Following the ruling, Justice Clarence Thomas wrote in his concurring opinion that the court may also reconsider precedents established in Griswold, a case that acknowledges Americans’ right to use contraception; Lawrence, a case protecting the right to engage in gay sex; and Obergefell.
Earlier this week, Michigan State Rep. Josh Shriver faced backlash for writing on X, “Make gay marriage illegal again. This is not remotely controversial, nor extreme.”
One user replied, “Make marriage free from government control.”
Another wrote, “Forcing hundreds of thousands of couples to lose their legal rights is extremely controversial, actually.”
According to a June Gallup poll, two-thirds of Americans believe same-sex marriage should be legal.
Karoline Leavitt, Trump’s incoming press secretary, told NBC News that it was “never a campaign promise” that Trump would reverse same-sex marriage legalization.
Earlier this year, Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort hosted a same-sex wedding in West Palm Beach, Florida. The president-elect received criticism and backlash from conservatives.
