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Anti-Gay Ballot Initiatives Prior to <EM>Romer v. Evans</EM>
The following is a list of antigay ballot initiatives that had been voted on in popular elections prior to 1996. In that year, in a case known as Romer v. Evans, 517 U.S. 620 (1996), the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that an initiative passed in Colorado to repeal existing sexual orientation anti-discrimination protections and prevent the adoption of such measures in the future violated the Equal Protection Clause of the U.S. Constitution. The success of Lambda Legal, the ACLU and the Colorado Legal Initiatives Project in litigating that case largely put an end to right-wing efforts to pass such measures.
| Year | City or STATE | Margin | Result |
| 1992 | COLORADO | 53-47 | Antigay Initiative passed |
| OREGON | 57-43 | Antigay Initiative failed | |
| Corvallis, Oregon | 64-34 | Antigay Initiative failed | |
| Springfield, Oregon | 56-44 | Antigay Initiative passed | |
| 1993 | Cornelius, Oregon | 62-38 | Antigay Initiative passed |
| Klamath County, Oregon | 64-36 | Antigay Initiative passed | |
| Josephine County, Oregon | 64-36 | Antigay Initiative passed | |
| Douglas County, Oregon | 72-28 | Antigay Initiative passed | |
| Linn County, Oregon | 68-32 | Antigay Initiative passed | |
| Canby, Oregon | 55-45 | Antigay Initiative passed | |
| Junction City, Oregon | 50.1-49.9 | Antigay Initiative passed (see 1) | |
| Creswell, Oregon | 58-42 | Antigay Initiative passed | |
| Estacada, Oregon | 55-45 | Antigay Initiative passed | |
| Lebanon, Oregon | 65-35 | Antigay Initiative passed | |
| Medford, Oregon | 58-42 | Antigay Initiative passed | |
| Molalla, Oregon | 55-45 | Antigay Initiative passed | |
| Sweet Home, Oregon | 69-31 | Antigay Initiative passed | |
| Jackson County, Oregon | 59-41 | Antigay Initiative passed | |
| Keizer, Oregon | 53-47 | Antigay Initiative passed | |
| Oregon City, Oregon | 53-47 | Antigay Initiative passed | |
| Cincinnati, Ohio | 62-38 | Antigay Initiative passed | |
| 1994 | Marion, Oregon | 61-39 | Antigay Initiative passed |
| Albany, Oregon | 59-41 | Antigay Initiative passed | |
| Junction City, Oregon | 57-43 | Antigay Initiative passed | |
| Cottage Grove, Oregon | 57-43 | Antigay Initiative passed | |
| Gresham, Oregon | 50.5-49.5 | Antigay Initiative failed (see 2) | |
| Oakridge, Oregon | 51-49 | Antigay Initiative passed | |
| Roseburg, Oregon | 65-35 | Antigay Initiative passed | |
| Turner, Oregon | 79-21 | Antigay Initiative passed | |
| Venetta, Oregon | 55-45 | Antigay Initiative passed | |
| Lake County, Oregon | 58-42 | Antigay Initiative passed | |
| Grants Pass, Oregon | 60-40 | Antigay Initiative passed | |
| IDAHO | 50-50 | Antigay Initiative failed | |
| OREGON | 51-49 | Antigay Initiative failed | |
| Alachua County, Florida | 57-43 | Antigay Initiative passed | |
| 1995 | MAINE | 53-47 |
Antigay Initiative failed |
Note: This list does not include antigay measures introduced in legislatures, or ballot measures which seek only to repeal antidiscrimination laws or executive orders. Antigay ballot initiatives that failed to generate enough signatures to qualify for the ballot, or were struck down by courts in pre-election challenges, are also not included. For example, the 1991 measure in Riverside, Calif. the first antigay initiative ever introduced is not included because it was invalidated in a pre-election challenge litigated by Lambda Legal and the ACLU.
(1) These results were thrown out by a court because of voting irregularities; another vote was held in March 1994 and the initiative passed again.
(2) While a majority of voters approved this initiative, the Gresham city charter requires 60% of the vote for passage