How Tim Kaine Changed His Mind on Gay Marriage

Democratic vice presidential hopeful Tim Kaine wasn’t always a proponent of same-sex marriage. In 2005, he even ran an ad during his bid for Virginia governor which said, “I’m conservative on personal responsibility, character, family and the sanctity of life,” said Mr. Kaine, who won the race. “I’m against same-sex marriage.” Yet according to the Wall Street Journal, Kaine has changed his mind and has evolved into a powerful LGBT ally. Per WSJ:

Mr. Kaine has said his turning point came in 2006, when as governor of Virginia he opposed a state constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage in the state. The Virginia amendment passed in November 2006, but was nullified when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in June 2015 that same-sex couples nationwide have a constitutional right to marry.

“My thinking has evolved on it because of people I know, so many gay and lesbian folks, some in longtime relationships who are great parents,” Mr. Kaine said, according to the Richmond Times-Dispatch.

Mr. Kaine also said he was concerned by the motivations of those supporting the state constitutional ban. “Some folks said to me candidly that this is really about trying to make the state inhospitable to gay people,” he said, according to the Times-Dispatch.

His first executive order as governor, signed the day he was inaugurated, banned discrimination against state employees, including on the basis of sexual orientation.

In the Senate, Mr. Kaine voted for legislation in November 2013 that would ban workplace discrimination against gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender workers.

Last night, Kaine accepted the nomination in Philadelphia. He stressed unity in his speech saying,”We are all neighbors. And we must love neighbors as ourselves.”