La. Voters Approve Same-Sex Amendment

Louisiana voters overwhelmingly approved Saturday a state constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriages and civil unions.

Only in New Orleans, home to a politically strong gay community, was the race relatively close.

Christian conservatives had conducted an intense grassroots lobbying campaign for the amendment.

A lawyer for Forum for Equality said the amendment does far more than stop gay marriage, adding it could affect many private contracts between unmarried couples, same-sex or not -- a claim its supporters dispute. The civil rights group promises legal action against it.

A consultant for Louisiana Family Forum, which pushed the amendment, said he's happy the state's voters upheld traditional marriage.

Advocates of the amendment and its opponents agreed it will be up to the courts to decide exactly what the measure does and does not do.

Similar amendments to ban same-sex marriage are on ballots in Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, Michigan, Mississippi, Montana, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon and Utah. Petitions in Ohio are still being verified.

A national telecast and webcast on religious media Sunday night was aimed at motivating Christians to convince their congressional representative to pass the Federal Marriage Amendment, which would limit marriage to couples of opposite sex. Backers argue it's needed to protect marriage.

President George W. Bush called for the federal amendment after Massachusett's top court ordered the state to begin issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples and San Francisco's mayor did the same. The measure came up in the U.S. Senate, but failed when supporters could not agree on language and did not appear to have the votes to pass the measure.

Federal amendments must be ratified by the states, as well as by the U.S. Congress.