If the U.S. Supreme Court overturns marriage equality, less than half the country will allow same-sex couples to wed.
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Laws prohibiting same-sex couples from marrying were deemed unconstitutional by the 2015 ruling, Obergefell v. Hodges. This could change if the court were to revisit and reverse the ruling, as it did with Roe v. Wade, which previously deemed abortion bans unconstitutional.
If the Supreme Court reverses Obergefell and determines bans against marriage equality are not unconstitutional, states with laws protecting same-sex couples' right to marry would need to independently overturn their laws for it to be banned. Those with constitutional amendments protecting marriage equality would have to call a referendum vote to overturn them, and those protected by state Supreme Court rulings — the next highest authority after the U.S. Supreme Court —would need their state's court to agree to hear the case again.
Related: Marriage equality will be banned in these 31 states if Obergefell is overturned
If Obergefell is reversed, marriages between same-sex couples will still be recognized federally under the Respect for Marriage Act. Signed into law by President Joe Biden in 2022, the act mandates that the federal government recognizes same-sex and interracial marriages, and that all states recognize those performed in other states. However, the act does not require states to allow marriages between same-sex couples.
While the Supreme Court has made no official move to reconsider marriage equality, nine states have recently introduced resolutions asking the court to hear the case again. None have yet passed, and even if they were to, the resolutions are nonbinding — meaning they carry no legal weight, and the court is not obligated to hear them.
Related: Will marriage equality be overturned? Here's how it could happen
However, some justices have voiced opposition to Obergefell. When the conservative majority created by Donald Trump overturned Roe v. Wade, Clarence Thomas wrote in his concurring opinion at the time that the court should also revisit and overrule decisions that prevent state restrictions on contraception, marriage equality, sodomy, and other private consensual sex acts, calling the rulings "demonstrably erroneous."
Here are the 19 states where same-sex couples could still get married if Obergefell is overturned, as outlined by the Movement Advancement Project, and just how secure those rights are.
California
Los Angeles Pride Parade 2019 with women celebrating on motorcycles
GrandAve / Shutterstock.com
California voters in 2008 passed Proposition 8, a constitutional amendment which banned same-sex couples from marrying. The amendment was overturned by voters in a 2024 referendum.
Colorado
Denver Pride Parade (June, 2019)
Philipp Salveter / Shutterstock.com
Colorado voters did approve a constitutional amendment, Amendment 43, in 2006 that banned marriage equality. They overturned it with an amendment in 2024. The state's current governor, Jared Polis, was the first sitting governor to marry a partner of the same-sex.
Connecticut
House in New Canaan, Connecticut with rainbow flags
Miro Vrlik Photography / Shutterstock.com
The Connecticut state Supreme Court determined in the 2008 ruling Kerrigan v. Commissioner of Public Health that bans against marriage equality are unconstitutional, making it the second state to legalize marriage for same-sex couples.
Delaware
Prairie Dogs Dance Troop at the Delaware Pride Festival in Dover.Lisa Rapko/ShutterstockDelaware legislators passed a law, House Bill 75, in 2013 legalizing marriage equality two years after the state began offering civil unions in 2011.
Hawaii
Pride Parade in Honolulu Hawaii (October, 2022)
MindStorm / Shutterstock.com
The Hawaii legislature passed the Hawaii Marriage Equality Act in a 2013 special session. Voters later repealed an amendment that allows the state legislature to ban marriage equality in a 2024 referendum.
Illinois
Resistance is justified from Stonewall to Palestine banner at Democratic National Convention protest in Chicago, Illinois (August, 2024)
John Ruberry / Shutterstock.com
The Illinois legislature passed the Religious Freedom and Marriage Fairness Act in 2013. A bill to legalize marriage equality had been introduced in the state legislature every year since 2008, finally succeeding in its fifth year.
Iowa
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Protest with "gay and here to stay" sign in Iowa
The only state with a marriage equality law still on the books that would not be enforceable is Iowa, where the state Supreme Court deemed the ban unconstitutional in the 2009 case Varnum v. Brien .
Maine
LGBTQ+ Pride in Portland, Maine - June 18, 2022Enrico Della Pietra / Shutterstock.comMaine became one of the first states to legalize marriage equality by popular vote in 2012, when voters approved Maine Question 1 in a referendum.
Maryland
The inaugural Pride Parade in Annapolis, Maryland - June 29, 2019Keri Delaney / Shutterstock.comMaryland, alongside Maine and Washington, was one of the first states to legalize marriage equality in a referendum. Voters approved Maryland Question 6 in 2012.
Massachusetts
Rainbow flags outside a church in Massachusetts
ShutterstockMassachusetts became the first state to legalize marriage equality in 2004, when then Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court ruled in Goodridge v. Department of Public Health that bans are unconstitutional.
Minnesota
Lowry Avenue Bridge in Minneapolis lit in Rainbow Colors in Honor of Orlando Victims.Shuttershock CreativeVoters in Minnesota rejected a 2012 constitutional amendment that would have banned marriage equality. The state legislature passed a law legalizing it the next year.
Nevada
LGBTQ+ Pride parade in Las Vegas, Nevada - October 21 , 2016Kobby Dagan / ShutterstockNevada previously had a constitutional amendment banning marriage equality, passed by voters in 2002. It became the first state to ask voters to overturn an amendment banning same-sex couples from marrying, which succeeded in a 2020 referendum also known as Nevada Question 2.
New Hampshire
Portsmouth PRIDE festival in New Hampshire (June, 2019) JTTucker / Shutterstock.comThe New Hampshire legislature passed HB 73 in 2009, which went into effect at the beginning of 2010.
New Jersey
Pride Parade in Asbury Park, New Jersey
Madison Swart / Shutterstock.com
New Jersey first legalized marriage equality in 2013 when then-governor Chris Christie withdrew the state's appeal of Garden State Equality v. Dow, which determined bans were unconstitutional. The state legislature later passed S3416 in 2022 codifying same-sex couples' right to marry into law.
New Mexico
Pride parade in Santa Fe, New Mexico (2018)Tom Lohr/ShutterstockThe New Mexico Supreme Court ruled in the 2013 decision Griego v. Oliver that bans against marriage equality are unconstitutional.
New York
Empire State Building in rainbow colors in honor of the Orlando shooting victims, New York City - June 26, 2016anaglic / Shutterstock.comThe New York legislature passed the Marriage Equality Act in 2011, then state constitution was amended in a 2024 referendum vote to prevent discrimination based on sexual orientation, which encompasses marriage.
Rhode Island
Rhode Island Gay Pride Fest celebrated in downtown Providence, Rhode Island, USA on June 17, 2017Anthony Ricci / ShutterstockThe Rhode Island legislature passed a marriage equality law in 2013, one year after the governor issued an executive order recognizing same-sex marriages performed elsewhere.
Vermont
LGBTQ+ Pride flag on lamppost in Montpelier, Vermont.Charles Patrick Ewing/ShutterstockThe Vermont legislature passed the Marriage Equality Act in 2009 after overriding a veto from Republican then-governor Jim Douglas. It was the first state that enacted marriage equality through legislation.
Washington
Seattle WA USA, June 25th 2023. Pride parade with SEATTLE spelled out in rainbow colorsSeaRick1 / ShutterstockWashington, alongside Maine and Maryland, was one of the first states to legalize marriage equality in a referendum vote (Referendum 74) in 2012.
Prairie Dogs Dance Troop at the Delaware Pride Festival in Dover.Lisa Rapko/Shutterstock
LGBTQ+ Pride in Portland, Maine - June 18, 2022Enrico Della Pietra / Shutterstock.com
The inaugural Pride Parade in Annapolis, Maryland - June 29, 2019Keri Delaney / Shutterstock.com
Lowry Avenue Bridge in Minneapolis lit in Rainbow Colors in Honor of Orlando Victims.Shuttershock Creative
LGBTQ+ Pride parade in Las Vegas, Nevada - October 21 , 2016Kobby Dagan / Shutterstock
Portsmouth PRIDE festival in New Hampshire (June, 2019) JTTucker / Shutterstock.com
Pride parade in Santa Fe, New Mexico (2018)Tom Lohr/Shutterstock
Empire State Building in rainbow colors in honor of the Orlando shooting victims, New York City - June 26, 2016anaglic / Shutterstock.com
Rhode Island Gay Pride Fest celebrated in downtown Providence, Rhode Island, USA on June 17, 2017Anthony Ricci / Shutterstock
LGBTQ+ Pride flag on lamppost in Montpelier, Vermont.Charles Patrick Ewing/Shutterstock
Seattle WA USA, June 25th 2023. Pride parade with SEATTLE spelled out in rainbow colorsSeaRick1 / Shutterstock
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