Iowa conservative leaders are promising to make gay marriage a central issue in next year's election.

Iowa Christian Alliance president Steve Scheffler says his group will focus on the legislative session beginning in January, lobbying lawmakers to begin the process of amending the state constitution to ban gay marriage, reports the Associated Press.

Scheffler said his group would recruit and finance opponents to run against legislators who do not support overturning the 2009 state supreme court ruling that legalized same-sex marriage.

The issue of marriage equality has come up in the state’s impending 2010 governor's race as well. Currently all Republican gubernatorial candidates oppose same-sex marriage. 

Businessman Bob Vander Plaats declared he would issue an executive order repealing marriage equality if elected, although current state officials say this move would be illegal. Another gubernatorial candidate, state senator Jerry Behn, believes the Iowa supreme court was out of line in overturning a previous ban on same-sex marriage and advocates removing three justices who participated in the decision when they come up for a retention vote next year. 

To read more about Iowa's marriage battle, click here.