Michigan state Rep. Jason Morgan (D-Ann Arbor) speaks at a news conference in Lansing to condemn Michigan House Republicans’ resolution to urge the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn Obergefell v. Hodges on Feb. 25, 2025. | Photo: Anna Liz Nichols
One week after one of his House colleagues introduced a resolution calling on the U.S. Supreme Court to reconsider its landmark ruling ending bans on same-sex marriage, state Rep. Jason Morgan (D-Ann Arbor) has introduced a effort of his own aiming to eliminate Michigan’s ban on gay marriage once and for all.
On March 5, Morgan put forth House Joint Resolution F, which would remove language in the state constitution which only recognizes marriage as the union between one woman and one man. It also switches out gendered language surrounding marriage and property for gender neutral language.
“This fight is personal — for myself, our families, our friends and all Michiganders — because everyone deserves the right to marry the person they love,” said Morgan, who is a married gay man.
“No politician should be able to decide who we can marry. The people of Michigan believe in equality, and it’s time our laws reflect that.”
While the Supreme Court’s 2015 ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges found several states’ — including Michigan’s — bans on same sex marriage violated the U.S. Constitution, several Republican lawmakers and conservative Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas have called on the court to reconsider the case, potentially placing marriage equality in jeopardy.
On Feb. 26, state Rep. Josh Schriver (R-Oxford) introduced a resolution calling on the Supreme Court to reconsider the case with support from six fellow Republican lawmakers.
Speaker of the House Matt Hall (R-Richland Twp.) later told reporters that the resolution would not be moving forward, noting it had been referred to the House Government Operations Committee, where legislative efforts are often sent to die.
Regardless, Morgan said the effort to remove the ban from the state’s constitution remained relevant.
“We saw what happened when the Supreme Court disregarded precedent and overturned landmark cases like Roe v. Wade,” said Morgan. “We have one member of the court openly calling to ‘reconsider’ cases like Obergefell. When people show you who they are, believe them. It’s time to act with conviction to protect people’s rights before it’s too late.”
If Morgan’s resolution passes both the House and the Senate, the matter would be placed on the ballot where Michigan voters would decide whether to remove the ban on same-sex marriage from the state constitution.
GET THE MORNING HEADLINES.