Tim Michels Opposes Marriage Equality

FILE - Wisconsin Republican gubernatorial candidate Tim Michels speaks as he appears with former President Donald Trump at a rally in Waukesha, Wis., on Aug. 5, 2022. (AP Photo/Morry Gash, File)

By Joe Zepecki

August 12, 2022

Republican nominee for Governor Tim Michels is standing by his 2004 opposition to same sex marriage in his bid to lead the state in 2022.

At the time of his failed 2004 run for the United States Senate, Michels supported a constitutional amendment defining marriage as between one man and one woman, which would have prevented marriage equality from becoming law in 2015.

To be fair, Michels was not alone in his opposition to marriage equality in 2004. But public opinion about, and support for, marriage equality has blossomed in the last 18 years as millions of Americans changed their mind.

Not Michels. In an interview with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Michels responded to a question about whether or not he would seek to ban same-sex marriage by stating that he believed marriage belongs to opposite sex couples.

That extreme belief puts Michels at odds with the overwhelming majority of Wisconsinites, more than 70% of whom support marriage equality.

It also sets up a clear divide on a fundamental civil rights question of our time. Democratic Governor Tony Evers was the first Wisconsin governor to raise the pride flag over the State Capitol during Pride Month and supports marriage equality.