On November 4, 2008, a majority of voters in California approved Proposition 8, an amendment to the California Constitution that specified that only marriage between a man and a woman would be recognized and valid in California. Almost 6.5 million Californians voted in favor of traditional marriage, including even those who supported the presidential candidacy of Barack Obama, who opposed the measure. Now that the vote is over, however, the opponents of Proposition 8 are still unsatisfied with the outcome. Many groups opposed to Proposition 8 have organized protests all across the United States, with thousands voicing their opposition to the amendment's passing. In some cases, churches in California and Utah that supported Proposition 8 were vandalized. Perhaps in response to the protests, there are now signs that the will of the people in California may be overturned by the California Supreme Court. On November 5, just one day after the election, three lawsuits were filed challenging the validity of Proposition 8 and seeking to overturn the passage of the amendment. Many of the arguments in the lawsuits seeking to overturn Proposition 8 claim that the measure is not valid because constitutional amendments can only be passed by a two-thirds vote of the California Legislature. In fact, the California Constitution states that: "The [voters] may amend the Constitution by initiative" and "a proposed amendment or revision shall be submitted to the [voters] and if approved by a majority of votes thereon takes effect the day after the election unless the measure provides otherwise" (California Constitution, Article XVIII, Sections 3 and 4). Therefore, not only was the passage of Proposition 8 valid according to the California Constitution, but the California Supreme Justices would be violating their sworn oath upon taking office: "I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of the State of California..." (California Constitution, Article XX, Section 3). As a result, this petition officially requests that the California Supreme Court uphold the will of the voters and protect traditional marriage in Califonia.

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