North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory (R) on Thursday vowed to veto legislation approved by the state’s House of Representatives that exempts magistrates and register of deeds from having to perform same-sex weddings if they have religious objections.
“I recognize that for many North Carolinians, including myself, opinions on same-sex marriage come from sincerely-held religious beliefs that marriage is between a man and a woman,” McCrory said in a statement according to The Charlotte Observer. “However, we are a nation and a state of laws. Whether it is the president, governor, mayor, a law enforcement officer, or magistrate, no public official who voluntarily swears to support and defend the Constitution and to discharge all duties of their office should be exempt from upholding that oath; therefore, I will veto Senate Bill 2.”
The legislation, which passed the North Carolina Senate in February in a vote of 32 to 16, passed the North Carolina House on Thursday in a vote of 67-43.
Each chamber would need a three-fifths majority for an override of McCrory’s veto. Republicans who support the legislation could override McCrory’s veto but the total vote in the House makes it seem less likely than in the Senate, the Observer noted.
To be clear, the legislation does not directly mention “same-sex marriages” but opponents argue it’s actually tailor-made to target gay couples. The New York Times noted that the bill would also exempt deputy or assistant registers of deeds from having to issue marriage licenses based on religious objections.
In April, an Elon University poll found that a majority of North Carolina voters opposed so-called “religious freedom” bills meant to protect businesses and individuals from having to serve gay couples based on religious objections.
