The Supreme Court ruled this morning in a 5-4 opinion drafted by Justice Anthony Kennedy that the Constitution guarantees a right to same-sex marriage. Kennedy was joined by Justices Ginsburg, Breyer, Sotomayor, and Kagan. Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Scalia, Thomas, and Alito dissented.
At issue in the Obergefell v. Hodges case were two main questions: 1) whether the 14th Amendment requires states to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples, and 2) whether a state must recognize same-sex marriage licenses issued in other states.
In its Obergefell opinion, the Supreme Court ruled that the answer to both questions is “yes.” The opinion was issued on June 26, the same date on which rulings in the Lawrence v. Texas and Windsor cases, both of which are viewed as key decisions by gay rights activists, were previously issued by the Supreme Court.
“The Fourteenth Amendment requires a State to license a marriage between two people of the same sex,” Kennedy wrote on behalf of the Supreme Court majority.” As a result, “The Fourteenth Amendment [also] requires States to recognize same-sex
marriages validly performed out of State.”
The full opinion, including both the majority opinion and multiple dissents, can be read here.
