Referendum 1
Only a marriage between one man and one woman shall be valid or recognized as a marriage in this state. A legal status identical or substantially similar to that of marriage for unmarried individuals shall not be valid or recognized in this state.
Results
Choice
 Votes  %
Yes 1,264,310 59.43%
No 862,924 40.57%
Valid votes 2,127,234 100.00%
Invalid or blank votes 0 0.00%
Total votes 2,127,234 100.00%
Source: CNN[1]

Wisconsin Referendum 1 of 2006 was a referendum on an amendment to the Wisconsin Constitution that would invalidate same-sex marriages or any substantially similar legal status. The referendum was approved by 59% of voters during the general elections in November 2006.[1] All counties in the state voted for the amendment except Dane County (home of the state capital, Madison, and the University of Wisconsin), which opposed it. The constitutional amendment created by Referendum 1 has been effectively nullified since June 26, 2015, when the United States Supreme Court ruled in Obergefell v. Hodges that state-level bans on same-sex marriage are unconstitutional.[2]

Amendment

The text of the adopted amendment, which became Article XIII, Section 13 of the state constitution, reads:

Only a marriage between one man and one woman shall be valid or recognized as a marriage in this state. A legal status identical or substantially similar to that of marriage for unmarried individuals shall not be valid or recognized in this state.[3]

As required by the constitution, the amendment was approved by both houses of the legislature, in two consecutive sessions. The legislative history of the amendment is as follows:

  • March 5, 2004: Approved by Wisconsin State Assembly by a vote of 68-27.
  • March 12, 2004: Approved by Wisconsin State Senate by a vote of 20-13[4]
  • December 6, 2005: Approved by the State Senate a second time, by a vote of 19-14.[5]
  • February 28, 2006: Approved by the State Assembly a second time.
  • November 7, 2006: Approved by referendum, by a margin of 59.4%-40.6%.[6]
County Yes No Total Votes
# % # % #
Adams 5,142 65.2% 2,741 34.8% 7,883
Ashland 3,566 59.9% 2,392 40.1% 5,958
Barron 10,958 68.8% 4,962 31.2% 15,920
Bayfield 4,132 57.9% 3,010 42.1% 7,142
Brown 55,780 60.6% 36,305 39.4% 92,085
Buffalo 3,428 64.1% 1,921 35.9% 5,349
Burnett 4,418 72.4% 1,686 27.6% 6,104
Calumet 13,338 69.0% 5,986 31.0% 19,324
Chippewa 13,993 65.4% 7,408 34.6% 21,401
Clark 7,737 69.2% 3,436 30.8% 11,173
Columbia 13,023 59.5% 8,866 40.5% 21,889
Crawford 3,980 62.1% 2,427 37.9% 6,407
Dane 70,377 33.1% 142,491 66.9% 212,868
Dodge 22,552 73.4% 8,154 26.6% 30,706
Door 8,412 59.2% 5,790 40.8% 14,202
Douglas 9,316 59.9% 6,241 40.1% 15,557
Dunn 8,520 58.9% 5,939 41.1% 14,459
Eau Claire 19,595 51.7% 18,297 48.3% 37,892
Florence 1,515 75.9% 481 24.1% 1,996
Fond du Lac 25,745 68.7% 11,731 31.3% 37,476
Forest 2,407 67.1% 1,180 32.9% 3,587
Grant 10,546 62.5% 6,321 37.5% 16,867
Green 7,074 54.1% 6,011 45.9% 13,085
Green Lake 5,850 74.0% 2,051 26.0% 7,901
Iowa 4,553 50.7% 4,424 49.3% 8,977
Iron 1,743 65.1% 935 34.9% 2,678
Jackson 4,418 63.8% 2,504 36.2% 6,922
Jefferson 19,918 65.1% 10,687 34.9% 30,605
Juneau 5,717 68.5% 2,625 31.5% 8,342
Kenosha 29,676 59.2% 20,490 40.8% 50,166
Kewaunee 6,450 72.9% 2,399 27.1% 8,849
La Crosse 21,327 50.2% 21,175 49.8% 42,502
Lafayette 3,624 62.8% 2,149 37.2% 5,773
Langlade 5,856 68.3% 2,724 31.7% 8,580
Lincoln 7,129 66.1% 3,661 33.9% 10,790
Manitowoc 22,442 70.1% 9,572 29.9% 32,014
Marathon 31,675 65.0% 17,054 35.0% 48,729
Marinette 12,192 72.8% 4,554 27.2% 16,746
Marquette 4,152 67.5% 2,003 32.5% 6,155
Menominee 507 53.1% 448 46.9% 955
Milwaukee 172,548 55.0% 141,453 45.0% 314,001
Monroe 8,871 66.2% 4,525 33.8% 13,396
Oconto 10,222 71.1% 4,165 28.9% 14,387
Oneida 9,356 59.1% 6,478 40.9% 15,834
Outagamie 42,849 62.6% 25,631 37.4% 68,480
Ozaukee 25,914 63.5% 14,916 36.5% 40,830
Pepin 2,106 70.3% 889 29.7% 2,995
Pierce 8,350 59.5% 5,673 40.5% 14,023
Polk 10,619 69.2% 4,733 30.8% 15,352
Portage 15,409 53.7% 13,285 46.3% 28,694
Price 3,944 63.6% 2,259 36.4% 6,203
Racine 43,869 63.8% 24,868 36.2% 68,737
Richland 3,939 61.6% 2,454 38.4% 6,393
Rock 30,220 55.6% 24,087 44.4% 54,307
Rusk 3,848 66.8% 1,916 33.2% 5,764
St. Croix 16,668 63.1% 9,749 36.9% 26,417
Sauk 12,394 57.1% 9,310 42.9% 21,704
Sawyer 4,245 67.1% 2,082 32.9% 6,327
Shawano 11,333 72.6% 4,279 27.4% 15,612
Sheboygan 32,908 70.3% 13,895 29.7% 46,803
Taylor 4,741 66.3% 2,414 33.7% 7,155
Trempealeau 5,996 63.4% 3,466 36.6% 9,462
Vernon 6,253 61.6% 3,901 38.4% 10,154
Vilas 6,386 61.8% 3,953 38.2% 10,339
Walworth 20,501 61.8% 12,652 38.2% 33,153
Washburn 4,465 68.0% 2,097 32.0% 6,562
Washington 38,759 73.7% 13,804 26.3% 52,563
Waukesha 118,736 68.3% 55,165 31.7% 173,901
Waupaca 13,281 69.6% 5,810 30.4% 19,091
Waushara 6,168 68.5% 2,833 31.5% 9,001
Winnebago 37,188 57.7% 27,228 42.3% 64,416
Wood 19,441 66.7% 9,723 33.3% 29,164
Totals 1,264,310 59.4% 862,924 40.6% 2,127,234
Source: Wisconsin Blue Book at the Wayback Machine (archived April 3, 2023)

In April 2009 the Wisconsin Supreme Court was asked in McConkey v. Van Hollen to rule on whether the 2006 Referendum 1 was constitutional. William McConkey, a political science instructor, claimed that the measure violated the state's constitution because it proposed more than one question in a single ballot proposal, which is impermissible under Wisconsin law.[7][8][9] On June 30, 2010, the Court ruled that the amendment referendum question was permissible and thus the amendment had been properly passed.[10][11] However, on June 6, 2014 the United States District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin overturned all bans on same-sex marriage in the state.[12] On October 6, 2014, same sex marriage was legalized in Wisconsin.

References

  1. 1 2 CNN.com Election 2006 - Ballot Measures Accessed 14 December 2006.
  2. ↑ "U.S. 21st country to allow same-sex marriage nationwide". CNN. June 26, 2015.
  3. ↑ "DOMAwatch.org - Wisconsin Archived 2005-03-10 at the Wayback Machine" Alliance Defense Fund. 2006. Accessed 06 January 2007.
  4. ↑ Assembly Joint Resolution 66, Journal of the Wisconsin Senate, March 11, 2004, p. 717. The final vote was taken shortly after midnight on March 12.
  5. ↑ Senate Joint Resolution 53, Journal of the Wisconsin Senate, Dec. 6, 2005, p. 488.
  6. ↑ Canvass Summary, Wisconsin State Elections Board, Fall General Election, Nov. 7, 2006.
  7. ↑ Wisconsin amendment supreme court
  8. ↑ Christopher Magnum, Wis. "Supreme Court Hears Gay Marriage Case", Advocate.com, Nov. 3, 2009.
  9. ↑ Patrick Marley, "State Supreme Court hears arguments on gay marriage amendment", The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Nov. 3, 2009.
  10. ↑ "Wisconsin Supreme Court upholds gay marriage ban". 6abc. WPVI-TV. June 30, 2010. Retrieved October 1, 2023.
  11. ↑ Foley, Ryan J. (June 30, 2010). "Wisconsin Supreme Court unanimously upholds gay marriage ban". Madison.com. Wisconsin State Journal. AP. Archived from the original on July 13, 2022. Retrieved October 1, 2023.
  12. ↑ "Wisconsin's same-sex marriage ban struck down". Retrieved June 6, 2014.
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