# 2006 Colorado Amendment 43

Colorado Amendment 43 was a referendum approved by the voters in 2006 that added a new section to Article II of the Colorado Constitution to define marriage in Colorado as only a union between one man and one woman. It passed with 55% of votes. In November 2024, over 64% of Colorado voters called Amendment J repealed the 2006 anti-gay clause within the state constitution.
Elections in Colorado :
Federal government
Presidential elections
1876
1880
1884
1888
1892
1896
1900
1904
1908
1912
1916
1920
1924
1928
1932
1936
1940
1944
1948
1952
1956
1960
1964
1968
1972
1976
1980
1984
1988
1992
1996
2000
2004
2008
2012
2016
2020
2024
Presidential caucuses and primaries
Democratic
2000
2008
2012
2016
2020
2024
Republican
2008
2012
2016
2020
2024
U.S. Senate elections
1876
1879
1883 sp
1885
1889
1891
1895
1897
1901
1903
1907
1909
1913
1913 sp
1914
1918
1920
1924
1924 sp
1926
1930
1932
1932 sp
1936
1938
1942
1942 sp
1944
1948
1950
1954
1956
1960
1962
1966
1968
1972
1974
1978
1980
1984
1986
1990
1992
1996
1998
2002
2004
2008
2010
2014
2016
2020
2022
2026
2028
U.S. House of Representatives elections
1876
1878
1880
1882
1884
1886
1888
1890
1892
1894
1896
1898
1900
1902
1904
1906
1908
1910
1912
1914
1916
1918
1920
1922
1924
1926
1927
1st sp
1928
1930
1932
1934
1936
1938
1940
3rd sp
1941
4th sp
1942
1944
1st sp
1946
1948
1950
1952
1954
1956
1958
1960
1962
1964
1966
1968
1970
1972
1974
1976
1978
1980
1982
1983
6th sp
1984
1986
1988
1990
1992
1994
1996
1998
2000
2002
2004
2006
2008
2010
2012
2014
2016
2018
2020
2022
2024
4th sp :
State government
General elections
2010
2014
2018
2020
2022
Gubernatorial elections
1876
1878
1880
1882
1884
1886
1888
1890
1894
1896
1898
1900
1902
1904
1906
1908
1910
1912
1914
1916
1918
1920
1922
1924
1926
1928
1930
1932
1934
1936
1938
1940
1942
1944
1946
1948
1950
1952
1954
1956
1958
1962
1966
1970
1974
1978
1982
1986
1990
1994
1998
2002
2006
2010
2014
2018
2022
2026
Secretary of State elections
2022
Attorney General elections
2014
2018
2022
Treasurer elections
2022
Colorado State Board of Regent elections
2016
Senate elections
2013 (recall)
2014
2016
2018
2020
2022
2024
House of Representatives elections
2018
2020
2022
2024 :
Ballot measures
List of Colorado ballot measures
1893
2
1972
8
1974
1
1982
1
1992
2
2000
20
2004
36
2006
38
41
42
43
44
E
F
G
H
I
J
K
2008
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
54
58
59
L
2010
62
2012
64
2018
A
2020
B
C
EE
113
114
2022
125
126
FF
2023
HH
II
2024
79
80
I
J
127
128
129
131 :
Colorado Springs
Local elections
2019
Mayoral elections
1995
1997 sp
1999
2003
2007
2011
2015
2019
2023 :
Denver
Mayoral elections
2003
2007
2011
2015
2019
2023 :
El Paso County
Local elections
2018 :
Pueblo
Mayoral elections
2023–24 :
vte :

## Background

On November 3, 1992, Colorado voters approved Amendment 2, which added language to the state constitution that prohibited the state and all of its subdivisions from allowing "homosexual, lesbian or bisexual orientation, conduct, practices or relationships" to provide the basis for any "claim any minority status, quota preferences, protected status or claim of discrimination." In 1994, the Colorado Supreme Court found the amendment unconstitutional. In 1996, the U.S. Supreme Court held in Romer v. Evans that the amendment, because it "allows discrimination against homosexuals and prevents the state from protecting them", was "motivated by animus towards homosexuals" and violated their rights under the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.

## Drafting

The amendment was drafted by Lieutenant Governor Jane Norton and her husband, former U.S. Attorney Michael J. Norton. Lieutenant Governor Norton explained "If we really don't take a stand now, it's really a matter of time before we lose the uniqueness of marriage. If we lose the uniqueness of marriage, we lose a fundamental building block of society."

## Content

The amendment provided that the only marriages recognized under the state constitution would be between a man and a woman whether licensed and celebrated as provided by law or established by common law by a couple who live together and hold themselves out publicly as husband and wife.
At the time the amendment was adopted, the benefits of marriage in Colorado included collecting benefits such as pensions, life insurance, and workers' compensation without being designated as a beneficiary; jointly incurring and being held liable for debts; making medical treatment decisions for each other; protection from discrimination based on marital status in areas such as employment and housing; filing income taxes jointly; and ending a marriage and distributing property through a legal process.

## Campaign

Groups in favor of Amendment 43 contended that it would preserve the commonly accepted and historical definition of marriage and that the marriage of a man and woman provides an optimal environment for creating, nurturing, and protecting children and preserving families. They also aimed to prevent the state courts from expanding the definition of marriage to same-sex couples.
Groups opposed to the amendment argued that it was inappropriate to add the definition of marriage to the constitution's Bill of Rights, which defines individual rights. They also argued the amendment was itself an unconstitutional form of discrimination, and redundant in that same-sex marriage was already prohibited by both state and federal statute.

## Pre-decision opinion polls

| Date of opinion poll | Conducted by | Sample size | In favor | Against | Undecided | Margin | Margin of Error | Source |
| 2006 | Denver Post | 625 voters | 51% | 43% | ? | ? | ? | |
| September 2006 | POS (R) for Rocky Mountain News | ? | 58% | ? | ? | ? | ? | |