Slovenians reject referendum to recognize same-sex marriage

December 22, 2015

On Sunday, Slovenians voted on a referendum to legalize same-sex marriage. The referendum failed to pass, with opposing majority.

Slovenia, whose population largely practice Roman Catholicism, neither recognizes marriage between nor allows full child adoption by two persons of the same sex. Even as a member of the European Union, its position has not changed.

The issue has been still debated in the country. In 2012, a majority of participating voters opposed a referendum to legalize same-sex marriage.

The government earlier this year passed a law to legally recognize same-sex marriage. However, the law had not been enforced; a civil group translated as For Children or Children Are at Stake demanded a referendum to the top court. The group's petition for a referendum collected at least 40,000 signatures.

In preliminary results from this year's elections, around 36.18% out of more than 1.7 million registered voters voted on the referendum. 63.5% voted to oppose the referendum, while 36.5% voted in favor.

Meanwhile, Slovenia allows civil union registration by same-sex couples since 2006. Also it allows them to adopt children of either partner's previous marriage(s). Thirteen European Countries, such as France and Spain, and five non-European countries legally recognize same-sex marriages.