The U.S. Supreme Court has officially been asked to overturn the 2015 decision that granted equal marriage rights to LGBTQ+ couples, causing concern for many around the nation and in Oklahoma.
Kim Davis, a former Kentucky county clerk who refused to issue marriage licenses, filed an appeal on July 24 about the compensation she was ordered to pay to a gay couple she denied a license. She asked the court, which holds a conservative supermajority, to overturn Obergefell v. Hodges.
But legal experts previously told USA TODAY that the court is unlikely to overturn that ruling. Also, President Joe Biden signed the Respect for Marriage Act in 2022, which passed through Congress with bipartisan support and requires all states to recognize same-sex and interracial marriages.
Though the request has made headlines, many uncertainties remain.
Here's what we do know about potential changes to the legality of same-sex marriage as of 2025, and what it might mean in Oklahoma.
Same-sex marriage laws in Oklahoma
The status of same-sex marriage depends on the Supreme Court's ruling. If the Court takes a route similar to the Dobbs overturn in 2022 and gives the decision to states, there is a point of contention in Oklahoma.
Though Oklahoma's Bill of Rights states that marriage "shall only consist of the union of one man and one woman," and further states that all same-sex marriages from other states "shall not be recognized as valid," that has been found unconstitutional by a 2014 District Court ruling.
The Constitutional Amendment was added after a Nov. 2, 2004, vote where over 533,000 Oklahomans voted to codify the illegitimacy of same-sex marriages. There were roughly 164,000 votes that supported gay marriage.
After a 10-year legal battle, the amendment was found unconstitutional in 2014 following U.S. District Court Judge Terence Kern's ruling. The case ruled that the Oklahoma Constitution violated the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. This ruled same-sex marriage legal in Oklahoma, and several couples ran to the clerk's offices to wed.
In the hypothetical where the Court yields power to the states, given the unconstitutionality would still stand, Oklahoma would have to define further what marriage looks like within the state through legal action.
But given that a decision has yet to be made by the Supreme Court, it is unclear what would happen to marriage equality in Oklahoma.
Oklahoma legislators petitioned SCOTUS to repeal Obergefell
Earlier this spring, a resolution was filed by Sen. Dusty Deevers, R-Elgin, and Rep. Jim Olsen, R-Roland, wishing that the Supreme Court overturn the Obergefell ruling.
Oklahoma was one of a group of states — most of which are politically conservative — to try to push back against the 2015 decision, joining Idaho, Montana, North Dakota, Michigan, South Dakota, Missouri, Tennessee and Texas.
Deevers wrote in the resolution, filed May 1, that “the Obergefell decision has resulted in litigation directly targeting Christians, such as Colorado baker Jack Phillips and Washington florist Barronelle Stutzman, for adhering to the historic definition of marriage."
Though the resolution did not pass the initial introduction, it went on to have 39 co-authors from both the House and the Senate listed in addition to Deevers and Olsen.
Democrats at the time said the resolution was "a waste of legislative time."
"All Oklahomans have the right to love whom they love in peace without state interference," said Senate Minority Leader Julia Kirt, D-Oklahoma City. "It is a waste of legislative time to attempt to roll back these rights that so many fought long and hard for."
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: If SCOTUS overturns same-sex marriage ruling, what happens in Oklahoma?
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