Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa endorses Marriage Plank in 2012 Democratic National Platform
Mar 07, 2012 at 12:04 pm
Another big endorsement of our "Democrats, Say I Do" campaign today! Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, who also serves as chair of the Democratic National Convention and a chair of Mayors for the Freedom to Marry, announced his support for a marriage plank in the Democratic Party's 2012 national platform while speaking to Politico's Mike Allen at the Newseum in Washington D.C. earlier today:
“It’s basically who we are. I believe in family values and I believe that we all want to be able to have a family and marry if we want to. I don’t think the government should be in that business of denying people the fundamental right to marry.” -Mayor Villaraigosa
As the chair of the Democratic National Convention, Villaraigosa's support is truly significant as we work to reach members of the Platform Drafting Committee between now and the Convention in September. He joins a growing number of elected officials and prominent members of the Democratic Party who have endorsed a marriage plank, including 22 U.S. Senators, House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi, seven Obama Campaign co-chairs, the Executive Director of Young Democrats for America Emily Sussman, the co-chairs of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, and nearly 32,000 voters across America.
Our National Campaign Director Marc Solomon released this statement today following Villaraigosa's endorsement:
“Freedom to Marry thanks Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa for his leadership in urging the national Democratic Party to include a marriage plank in the platform that will be ratified at the Democratic National Convention, which he is chairing this September. For many years, Mayor Villaraigosa has been a tireless champion, in California and throughout the country, for the freedom of gay and lesbian couples to marry the person they love. He knows that loving and committed couples should not be denied the freedom to profess their commitment in front of their communities, to protect and take care of their families, and share in the critical safety-net of protections that only marriage provides."
As noted earlier, Villaraigosa also leads our bipartisan Mayors for the Freedom to Marry coalition, which includes more than 175 mayors from 32 states who support marriage for gay and lesbian couples.
We're only a month into our Democrats, Say I Do campaign, and I think it's safe to say that we've generated incredible momentum in a short amount of time! Stay tuned for more announcements from elected officials and Democratic Party leaders in the coming weeks and months.