Obama stance sparks call to allow same-sex marriages in Nevada

CARSON CITY - A state legislator vowed to take steps to repeal Nevada's constitutional ban on gay marriage almost immediately after President Barack Obama announced his support for such marriages Wednesday.

"If the president of the United States favors it, then why can't we?" asked Assemblyman Tick Segerblom, D-Las Vegas. "It will be 14 years from the time that amendment passed until we can get it back on the ballot. The mood of the public has changed."

State and Clark County Democratic leaders also expressed their support for gay marriage Wednesday.

But Republican Gov. Brian Sandoval does not support same-sex marriage. Nor does incoming Assembly Republican leader Pat Hickey. Hickey said he doubts most Nevadans want the ban lifted and added that not all Democratic legislators support gay marriage.

Segerblom, a state Senate candidate, said he will introduce a resolution at the Legislature next year to repeal the ban and allow same-sex marriages. With approval by legislators in 2013 and 2015, the proposal would be placed before voters in 2016.

State Sen. David Parks, D-Las Vegas, said a lawsuit in federal court in Southern Nevada challenging the same-sex ban should be resolved before then. It could determine that same-sex marriages are permitted under the U.S. Constitution. The Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund filed the lawsuit April 10. Six states now allow gay marriages.

"I definitely believe the feeling of people about (same-sex marriages) has changed significantly," said Parks, the only openly gay legislator.

Other state and county Democratic leaders expressed support for Obama.

"President Obama has made equal rights for all Americans a cornerstone of his administration, and today's announcement further highlights his tremendous leadership on this issue," state Democratic Party Chairwoman Roberta Lange said.

Clark County Democratic Chairman Chris Miller, who is gay, also praised the president for recognizing "full marriage equality for all Americans."

"We must remember the fight is not over," Miller said. "We still have important work to get done. Today we gained the most powerful ally in the free world on the side of equality."

To bring gay marriage to Nevada, voters and legislators must approve a constitutional amendment that would repeal a state constitutional amendment backed by more than two-thirds of Nevada voters in the 2000 and 2002 elections. The amendment prohibits same-sex marriages, although legislators in 2009 approved domestic partnerships, giving gay and unmarried straight couples the same legal rights as married couples.

Hickey, the Assembly Republican Caucus leader from Reno, does not believe most Nevadans support gay marriage and opposes it himself.

"The people of Nevada already have spoken on this issue rather resoundingly, and I haven't heard from constituents that have changed their minds. If the president and Democrats want to make an issue about it, I will be happy to represent my position."

He said that both the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and the Catholic Church oppose gay marriage and that state legislators of both parties are members of those churches.

Sandoval supports the amendment that marriages should be between only one man and one woman, according to his spokeswoman, Mary-Sarah Kinner.

The governor defied the wishes of most Republican legislators last year when he signed three bills to prohibit discrimination against transgender people.

Miller believes most Nevadans now back gay marriage, although he knows of no Nevada-specific polls backing that view. A Gallup poll last year found that for the first time a majority of Americans support same-sex marriage. Domestic partnerships do not give people like him full equal rights, he said.

Both Segerblom and Parks believe same-sex marriage would be an economic boom for Las Vegas because resorts could appeal to gay couples.

"I don't know why we don't have gay marriage in Las Vegas," Segerblom said.

Contact Capital Bureau Chief Ed Vogel at evogel@reviewjournal.com or 775-687-3901.