California Family Council (CFC) is grateful to announce that Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), a national leader in legal advocacy for marriage and family, has released an analysis of Proposition 3 on the November 2024 California ballot. CFC encourages Californians to review ADF’s findings and consider the significant ramifications Prop 3 could have on marriage laws statewide. (ADF Prop 3 analysis)
Prop 3 proposes repealing Proposition 8, which currently defines marriage as between a man and a woman in California’s Constitution. However, ADF’s analysis reveals that passing Prop 3 would do far more than repeal Prop 8: it would establish a fundamental right to marry within the state constitution. This change could destabilize longstanding marriage laws. According to ADF’s report, “If Prop 3 passes, all existing and future state regulations of any kind concerning marriage would be vulnerable to legal challenges arguing that they violate the fundamental right to marry. Current laws relating to marriage that could be challenged include: limiting marriage to two individuals, limiting marriages between close family relations, and forbidding children to marry.”
Alliance Defending Freedom: A Proven Advocate for Marriage and Family
Alliance Defending Freedom has successfully represented clients in 15 cases before the U.S. Supreme Court, defending marriage, family, and religious liberty. ADF’s analysis on Prop 3 underscores their dedication to these principles, explaining that establishing marriage as a fundamental right would expose laws that define marriage as a union between two people to rigorous judicial scrutiny.
“Alliance Defending Freedom’s new analysis confirms what California Family Council and our allies have been saying since the legislature first passed this dangerous proposal last year: Proposition 3 poses highlights the critical risks to marriage laws as we know them,” said Jonathan Keller, President of the California Family Council. “ADF has a long track record of winning at the highest courts in the nation, and their expertise makes it clear that Prop 3 could dismantle key protections that Californians rely on to protect children and families. Under this amendment, restrictions on polygamous, incestuous, and underage marriages could quickly come under fire.”
What Californians Need to Know About Proposition 3
ADF’s analysis highlights that, should Prop 3 pass, activists may soon push to legalize polygamous marriages, arguing that the “personal choice, individual autonomy, love, and commitment” rationale established by Obergefell v. Hodges applies equally to relationships involving more than two people, between relatives, and even between adults and minors. “If Prop 3 passes, activists could push for polygamous marriages—with all their accompanying harms—to become a reality in California,” ADF warns, adding that “challenges to limitations on incestuous and child marriages could follow shortly thereafter.”
The report further notes that, although incestuous marriages are currently illegal due to concerns about birth defects, such arguments could be overturned under strict scrutiny if concerns about birth defects are removed from the analysis. ADF highlights a worrying potential for arguments allowing child marriages to follow, noting California’s recent moves to expand minors’ rights to consent to significant life-altering decisions like gender transition and abortion. As ADF puts it, “It is likely that activists will argue that a child also has the capacity to consent to marriage to an adult—even over the parents’ objections.”
CFC Urges Californians to Review ADF’s Findings
California Family Council invites residents to review ADF’s comprehensive analysis of Proposition 3 and consider its potential impact. This ballot measure is about more than marriage equality; it’s about safeguarding the future of families and protecting children from exposure to detrimental marital arrangements. For those interested, ADF’s full analysis is available on their website, offering an essential perspective for voters this November.
In addition to Alliance Defending Freedom’s analysis, legal experts Dean Broyles of the National Center for Law and Policy and Kelly Rickert with Advocates for Faith and Freedom have issued reports that echo similar concerns about Proposition 3. Both Broyles and Rickert caution that Prop 3 could severely undermine existing marriage laws, including those that prohibit polygamy, incestuous marriages, and child marriages. Their expert analyses align with ADF’s findings, further underscoring the potential risks this amendment poses to California families. These reports provide a compelling case for voters to consider the broader implications of Prop 3 as they head to the polls this November.
