Former DNC Chairs: It's Time to Endorse Marriage

Former Democratic National Committee chairs Howard Dean, Donald Fowler, Steve Grossman, and David Wilhelm submitted a joint statement to their party Wednesday urging Democrats to endorse marriage equality in their platform.

"Fighting for families, freedom, and inclusion in the American Dream is the Democratic Party's DNA—its history, values, and vision for the country," the four said in a statement, according to The Huffington Post. "That's why so many of the most influential Party leaders — including, today, four of the most recent Party chairs — support a freedom to marry plank in the Democratic Party platform."

While President Barack Obama and current party chairwoman Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz have not indicated whether they agree, the convention's chairman, Los Angeles mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, has said that marriage should be a plank issue for Democrats starting this year. Meanwhile, Freedom to Marry has launched the Democrats: Say I Do campaign, urging the party to expand its platform, ensuring an official party-wide stance on marriage.