Kansas voters give OK to gay marriage ban

TOPEKA, Kan. -- Voters in Kansas overwhelmingly approved a constitutional amendment Tuesday banning same-sex couples from marrying or entering into civil unions.

With more than half of precincts reporting, 298,647 votes, or 70 percent, were cast in favor of a constitutional amendment, with 128,366, or 30 percent, opposed.

Gay marriage is already banned under Kansas law, and the law is not being challenged. But supporters of the ballot measure said the ban must be in the Kansas Constitution to insulate it from legal challenge.

Most voters appeared to brush aside critics' arguments that the amendment could have unexpected consequences, such as preventing companies from offering health benefits to employees' partners, gay or heterosexual.

"The way marriage is in the Bible, God says it's between man and woman," said Sharon Kent, 58, of the Kansas City suburb of Mission. "I don't have a problem with gays being together, living together, but I have a problem with them getting married."

Matt Foreman, executive director of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, said the vote was not surprising, given results in other states.

"What is appalling is the continued silence and inaction of people of faith and people of goodwill to speak out, to stand up to this wave of attacks against gay people," he said.

The Rev. Terry Fox, senior pastor at Wichita's Immanuel Baptist Church and a leader of the campaign for the proposal, said he expects opponents to challenge the amendment in court.