Respect For Marriage Act: How PA Republican House Members Voted

PENNSYLVANIA — Three Republican U.S. Congressmen were among 47 from across the country to break with the mainstream of their party to codify same-sex and interracial marriage into law on Tuesday.

The vote in the U.S. House on the Respect for Marriage Act comes as Democrats fear such long-held rights are now suddenly vulnerable, given an active and very conservative U.S. Supreme Court majority. Tuesday's vote comes after the Supreme Court reversed Roe v. Wade, reversing previously afforded federal protections for the right to an abortion, among other privacy issues.

Pennsylvania's Scott Perry, Brian Fitzpatrick, and Dan Meuser were the trio of representatives that crossed party lines. The remainder of the state's Republican delegation voted against the measure, while all Democratic representatives supported it as expected.

The June decision in the case that reversed Roe, Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, was one of the few times in history the Supreme Court has invalidated an earlier decision declaring a constitutional right.

It sparked fears other landmark cases, including the 2015 decision legalizing same-sex marriage, could fall next. In his concurring opinion, Justice Clarence Thomas argued that if the Constitution's Due Process Clause doesn't guarantee the right to an abortion, it doesn't guarantee other substantive rights, either.

The vote also drew response from other Pennslyvania elected officials, including Gov. Tom Wolf.

"I applaud the U.S. House for taking action to protect marriage equality," the governor shared. "As the fundamental rights of Americans are threatened by the courts, I urge the U.S. Senate to do the right thing."

As the bill heads to the U.S. Senate, there are other questions. Partiuclarly, Of note is the still unclear, pending vote of U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey, the state's outgoing senator who, despite a long record as a staunch conservative, has found himself in the unexpected role of a moderate whose vote on some more extreme measures is seen as flippable.

Just over 20 percent of the GOP caucus supported the measure, which passed 267-157 on a roll call vote — signaling that at least some faction of the party accepts the decisions that constitutionally protected same-sex marriage, or that Republicans recognize personal freedoms are on the ballot in the November midterm elections.

Notably, both House Republican Conference Chairwoman Elsie Stefanik of New York and National Republican Congressional Committee Chair Tom Emmer of Minnesota voted with the Democrats.

Democratic Sens. Dianne Feinstein of California and Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin were joined by Sen. Susan Collins in sponsoring the Senate version of the Respect for Marriage Act.

Importantly, the legislation codifying the rights to same-sex and interracial marriage repeals the 1990s-era Defense of Marriage Act. The Supreme Court declared it unconstitutional in two cases, Windsor v. United States, and the Obergefell v. Hodges decision protecting same-sex marriage.

The Defense of Marriage Act allowed states to refuse to recognize valid civil marriages of same-sex couples. That legislation also exempted same-sex couples, regardless of their marital status, from federal statutes, regulations and rulings that apply to other married people, denying them more than 1,100 federal benefits.

The House Democratic caucus voted unanimously in support of the Respect for Marriage Act. Republicans who joined them are:

California: Reps. Ken Calvert, Mike Garcia, Jay Obernolte, Darrell Issa and David Valadao.

Florida: Reps. Kat Cammack, Mario Diaz-Balart, Rep. Carlos Gimenez, Brian Mast, Maria Elvira Salazar and Michael Waltz.

Idaho: Rep. Mike Simpson.

Illinois: Reps. Rodney Davis and Adam Kinzinger.

Iowa: Reps. Ashley Hinson and Mariannette Miller-Meeks.

Michigan: Reps. Peter Meijer and Fred Upton.

Minnesota: Rep. Tom Emmer.

Missouri: Rep. Ann Wagner.

Nebraska: Rep. Don Bacon.

New Jersey: Rep. Jefferson Van Drew

New York: Reps. Andrew Garbarino, Chris Jacobs, John Katko, Nicole Malliotakis, Elise Stefanik and Lee Zeldin.

North Dakota: Rep. Kelly Armstrong.

Ohio: Reps. Mike Carey, Anthony Gonzalez, David Joyce and Mike Turner.

Oregon: Rep Cliff Bentz.

Pennsylvania: Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick, Dan Meuser and Scott Perry.

South Carolina: Reps. Nancy Mace and Tom Rice.

Texas: Rep. Tony Gonzales.

Utah: Reps. John Curtis, Blake Moore, Burgess Owens and Chris Stewart.

Washington: Rep. Dan Newhouse.

Wisconsin: Rep. Bryan Steil.

Wyoming: Rep. Liz Cheney

Five of the GOP House members who supported the bill — Gonzalez, Kinzinger, Katko, Upton and Jacobs — are not seeking reelection this year. Davis and Rice lost their primaries for re-election, and Zeldin is running for New York.