Putin Wants Constitution to Ban Same-Sex Marriage

He proposes amendment defining marriage as between a man and a woman
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Mar 3, 2020 2:51 AM CST
Putin Wants Constitution to Ban Same-Sex Marriage
In this Sunday, April 28, 2019 photo, President Vladimir Putin, right, talks with Russian Orthodox Patriarch Kirill during the Easter service in the Christ the Savior Cathedral in Moscow, Russia.   (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko, File)

Like George W. Bush before him, Vladimir Putin is supporting a constitutional amendment to define marriage as being between a man and a woman. Unlike the American leader, the Russian president is highly likely to see the amendment become the law of the land. Russian lawmakers said Monday that Putin's proposed amendments include one that would ensure same-sex marriage was never legalized, reports Reuters. "For me, the most important one is his proposal to enshrine in basic law the concept of marriage as a union between a man and a woman," Pyotr Tolstoy, deputy chairman of the lower house of Russia's parliament, told reporters.

Putin—who is close to the Russian Orthodox Church and has become even more conservative in his fourth term as president—said last month that same-sex marriage would never happen while he is in the Kremlin. The constitutional amendments submitted by Putin also include a section stating Russia's "faith in God," lawmakers said. The amendments are part of the first overhaul of Russia's constitution since 1993. After approval from Russia's parliament, which is seen as almost guaranteed, the changes will be voted on in a nationwide referendum next month. The amendment on marriage is expected to boost turnout amid conservative Russian voters, the Guardian reports. (More Vladimir Putin stories.)

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