Wisconsin Court Upholds Gay Marriage Ban

(CN) - The Wisconsin Supreme Court on Wednesday unanimously upheld the state's ban on gay marriages and civil unions.

The court ruled that a proposal for a constitutional amendment was properly put before voters in 2006, and dismissed voter William McConkey's lawsuit arguing that the move violated rules limiting constitutional amendments to a single topic.

Nearly 60 percent of voters voted in favor of limiting the definition of marriage to one man and one woman, and to outlaw any "legal status identical or substantially similar" to marriage for same-sex couples.

"To be clear, the question before us is not whether the marriage amendment is good public policy or bad public policy, nor is its interpretation or application before us today," Justice Michael Gableman wrote. "The issue before us is whether the marriage amendment was adopted in conformity with the constitutional requirements that the people be allowed to vote separately on separate amendments."

The court ruled 7-0 that it was.

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