Oregon’s attorney general said Thursday that she will not defend the state’s constitutional ban on same-sex marriage.
Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum argued in a court filing that Oregon’s ban, which voters added to the state constitution in 2004, “cannot withstand a federal constitutional challenge under any standard of review,” as quoted by The Oregonian.
Rosenblum filed her brief with U.S. District Judge Michael McShane, who is hearing a suit brought by four same-sex couples challenging the state’s ban. Her statement means that both the plaintiffs and the defendant in the case view the ban on same-sex marriage as unconstitutional.
Aside from that court challenge, a campaign to overturn the ban via a ballot initiative in the November election has gained the support of GOP officials and activists.
