Virginia voters have overturned a 20-year-old constitutional ban on same-sex marriage, approving an amendment that protects the right of same-sex and interracial couples to marry under state law.
Question 2 passed Tuesday, November 3, 2026, with approximately 57% support, replacing language adopted in 2006 that defined marriage exclusively as a union between one man and one woman.
The new amendment recognizes marriage as a fundamental right and requires Virginia to issue marriage licenses to two adults regardless of their sex, gender or race. State officials must also recognize lawful marriages and treat them equally under the law.
Same-sex marriage has been legal in Virginia since 2014, when federal courts struck down the state's marriage restrictions. The U.S. Supreme Court established a nationwide right to same-sex marriage the following year in Obergefell v. Hodges, leaving Virginia's constitutional ban unenforceable.
The new state protections would remain in place independently of Obergefell, which Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas has previously called on the court to reconsider. The 2015 decision remains binding precedent nationwide.
Virginia was also at the center of the Supreme Court's 1967 decision in Loving v. Virginia, which struck down bans on interracial marriage. Richard and Mildred Loving had been prosecuted under a state law prohibiting marriages between people of different races. The justices unanimously ruled that the restrictions violated constitutional guarantees of equal protection and due process.
Efforts to remove Virginia's 2006 marriage restriction required approval from lawmakers in two successive legislative sessions before the proposed amendment could appear on the ballot. State legislators completed that process earlier this year, sending the measure to voters for the final decision.
Supporters backed the amendment as a way to secure marriage protections under Virginia's Constitution regardless of future changes in federal law. The approved language also establishes that the right to marry is a fundamental personal right essential to the pursuit of happiness.
Virginia election officials must certify the results before the amendment takes effect on January 1, 2027.
