John Kasich presidential campaign, 2016/Gay rights

	; ; Former presidential candidate; John Kasich
	Political offices: ; Governor of Ohio; (2011-2019); U.S. House, Ohio, District 12; (1983-2001); Ohio State Senate; (1979-1983)
	Kasich on the issues:
	Taxes • Banking policy • Government regulations • International trade • Budgets • Agricultural subsidies • Federal assistance programs • Foreign affairs • Federalism • Natural resources • Healthcare • Immigration • Education • Abortion • Gay rights
	Republican candidate:
	Donald Trump
	Ballotpedia's presidential election coverage; 2028 • 2024 • 2020 • 2016

Ballotpedia's scope changes periodically, and this article type is no longer actively created or maintained. It may also contain neutrality issues.

This page was current as of the 2016 election.

In a CNN interview on April 15, 2016, Kasich discussed his position on a Mississippi law preventing the prohibition of LGBT discrimination. He said that people advocating for religious liberty and LGBT rights needed to “strike a balance.” Kasich continued, “So if we would just kind of calm down here, I think things would settle down. And what I like to say is, just relax. If you don't like what somebody's doing, pray for them. And if you feel as though somebody is doing something wrong against you, can you just, for a second, get over it, you know, because this thing will settle down."^[1]

During an interview with MSNBC's Chris Matthews on April 14, 2016, John Kasich said that "’the court has ruled’ on same-sex marriage and he would not advocate for any efforts to ban it, even though he supports traditional marriage,” according to NBC News. Kasich added, "There could be an effort to pass a Constitutional Amendment. I'm not for doing it. I'm for moving on.”^[2]

During a televised town hall with his family on April 11, 2016, Kasich questioned a recently adopted state law that would allow private businesses to discriminate against gay individuals. “I read about this thing they did in Mississippi, where apparently you can deny somebody service because they're gay? What the hell are we doing in this country? I mean, look, I may not appreciate a certain lifestyle or even approve of it, but I can—it doesn't mean I've got to go write a law and try to figure out how to have another wedge issue,” he said.^[3]

At the tenth Republican debate on February 25, 2016, Kasich stated, “Religious institutions should be able to practice the religion that they believe in. No question and no doubt about it. Now, in regard to same-sex marriage, I don't favor it. I've always favored traditional marriage, but, look, the court has ruled and I've moved on. And what I've said, Hugh, is that, look, where does it end? If you're in the business of selling things, if you're not going to sell to somebody you don't agree with, OK, today I'm not going to sell to somebody who's gay, and tomorrow maybe I won't sell to somebody who's divorced. I mean, if you're in the business of commerce, conduct commerce. That's my view. And if you don't agree with their lifestyle, say a prayer for them when they leave and hope they change their behavior. But when it comes to the religious institutions, they are in inviolate in my mind, and I would fight for those religious institutions. And look, I've appointed over a hundred judges as governor. I even appointed adjudge to the Ohio Supreme Court. And you know what they are? They're conservatives. Go check it out. They are conservatives. They don't make the law. They interpret the law. That's all they do. And they stick by the Constitution. So I will do that. But let's just not get so narrow here as to gotcha this or that. I think my position is clear.”^[4]

The Supreme Court ruled that same-sex marriage bans are unconstitutional on June 26, 2015. Following the decision, Kasich had a different response than many GOP candidates. He said, "I do believe in traditional marriage, but the court has ruled and it’s time to move on. I think everybody needs to take a deep breath to see how this evolves. But I know this. Religious institutions, religious entities — you know, like the Catholic church — they need to be honored as well. I think there’s an ability to strike a balance.”^[5]

John Kasich opposes gay marriage, and in 2013 he stated, "I've got friends that are gay and I've told them 'Look, (same sex marriage) is just not something I agree with' and I’m not doing it out of a sense of anger or judgment, it's just my opinion on this issue."^[6] At one point, Kasich commented that he supported civil unions, but his spokesman later clarified that he still opposed civil unions and that, "while he may have used the term 'civil union' loosely in this instance, he recognizes the existing rights of Ohioans to enter into private contracts to manage their personal property and health care issues."^[6]

Kasich voted for the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which defined the word "marriage" as "a legal union between one man and one woman as husband and wife."^[7]

During a CNN interview on April 10, 2016, John Kasich said that he would "probably not" have signed the controversial North Carolina law that prohibits transgender individuals from using public bathrooms that match their gender identity and blocks cities from passing anti-discrimination ordinances to protect gay and transgender people. Kasich also said that people who disagree on the issue should "get over it."^[8]

According to the Human Rights Campaign, Kasich voted against efforts to prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation. As governor of Ohio, he signed an executive order banning discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation for state employees, but it was weaker than the previous executive order signed by his predecessor because it omitted protections for gender identity.

On August 15, 2010, when John Kasich was a candidate for governor or Ohio, the Columbus Dispatch asked him, “Would you renew the 2007 executive order that no one can be fired from or denied a state job on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity? Do you support legislation passed by the Ohio House that would outlaw discrimination based on sexual orientation?” Kasich answered “Yes.” On January 22, 2011, Governor Kasich signed an executive order that protects state employees or candidates for state employment from discrimination based on "‘race, color, religion, gender, national origin (ancestry), military status (past, present or future), disability, age (40 years or older), genetic information, or sexual orientation,’" but not "gender identity."^[9]

Recent news

This section links to a Google news search for the term John + Kasich + Gay + Rights