Listen to this articleThe ultraconservative Sutherland Institute presented 18,600 first names of people who signed two petitions that opposed marriage equality. One petition expressed support for “traditional marriage.” It was launched in December, 2013 after 10th District Court Judge Robert Shelby ruled that Utah’s Amendment 3 was unconstitutional. An opposite petition in favor of same-sex marriage launched the same day received 17,000 signatures in 24 hours and currently has a total of 46,743.
The other petition was launched in June and said that the “silent majority” supports Utah Gov. Gary Herbert and Attorney General Sean Reyes’ efforts to defend the anti-marriage equality amendment and other laws that restrict marriage to one man and one woman.
Sutherland leaders said they chose to only release the first names of petition signers to the governor because of concerns for privacy.
