Amendments to ban gay marriage won approval Tuesday in South Carolina, Wisconsin and Virginia as voters in many states considered ballot measures addressing an array of the nation’s most divisive social issues.A total of 205 measures were on the ballots in 37 states _ ranging from routine bond measures to a riveting contest in South Dakota, where voters chose whether to uphold or reject a toughest-in-the-nation law that would ban virtually all abortions.
Nationwide, activists on both sides of the abortion debate were on edge over the campaign. If the ban is upheld, abortion-rights supporters are likely to launch a legal challenge that could lead all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Eight states had ban-gay-marriage amendments on their ballots; results were pending in Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, South Dakota and Tennessee. Though similar amendments passed previously in all 20 states to consider them, gay-rights activists nursed hopes that the streak might be broken this year in at least one state.
Colorado voters had an extra option – measure that would grant domestic-partnership rights to same-sex couples.
Conservatives hoped the same-sex marriage bans might increase turnout for Republicans – but it appears the Republicans are going down …
