Reading Time: < 1 minute

Wisconsin Watch partners with Gigafact to produce fact briefs — bite-sized fact checks of trending claims. Read our methodology to learn how we check claims.

Yes.

On Nov. 16, 2022 Republican U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin voted against a procedural motion to advance the Respect for Marriage Act — a bill that would codify same-sex marriage equality nationwide.

“The Respect for Marriage Act is unnecessary,” Johnson said in a statement, asserting the U.S. Supreme Court decision legalizing same-sex marriage is “settled law and has no chance of being overturned.” 

Johnson also said the bill in its current form — authored by Wisconsin Democratic U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin — “did not provide sufficient protection for those with strongly held religious beliefs.”

Twelve Senate Republicans voted for the measure, advancing it to a final vote.

In July, the U.S. House passed the measure, with Wisconsin Democrats Mark Pocan, Ron Kind and Gwen Moore and Republican Bryan Steil voting yes, and Wisconsin Republicans Scott Fitzgerald, Mike Gallagher, Glenn Grothman and Tom Tiffany voting no.

Sources

Ron Johnson Senator from Wisconsin: Sen. Johnson releases statement on Respect for Marriage Act

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Ron Johnson opposes bill to codify same-sex marriage, despite attempt to address concerns over religious freedoms

Human Rights Campaign: Respect For Marriage Act press release

US House of Representatives: Roll call on House vote on Respect for Marriage Act

Creative Commons License

Republish our articles for free, online or in print, under a Creative Commons license.

Jacob Alabab-Moser joined as Wisconsin Watch’s fact checker in September 2022, as part of the effort by The Gigafact Project in partnership with different state-level news outlets to combat misinformation in the 2022 midterm elections. Jacob has several years of experience as a fact checker and research assistant at a variety of organizations, including at The Gigafact Project. He holds a BA from Brown University and is pursuing a MSc from the London School of Economics and Political Science.