Iowa Senate Dem Vows to Block Marriage Equality Vote

Mike Gronstal, the Iowa senate majority leader, said that he would use his power to prevent a vote on a marriage amendment to the state constitution.

The Democrat's reaffirmed commitment arrives as Republicans prepare to take control of the governor's office and house, and may even reach a 25-25 tie in the senate, which would give Gronstal equal power.

According to The Des Moines Register, "Senate Republicans intend to try various maneuvers to force a vote, even though they don't believe such efforts will succeed. Senate Minority Leader Paul McKinley, R-Chariton, hopes public pressure might eventually compel Gronstal to allow a vote, but Gronstal said Wednesday that will never happen."

The Register reports that the secretary of the senate said there is no mechanism whereby even a majority of senators could override the majority leader.

Meanwhile, governor-elect Terry Branstad, who would likely apply the pressure on Gronstal, said the majority leader's opposition to a marriage vote is what prompted the opposition to oust the three state supreme court judges who voted for the court's unanimous marriage equality decision last year.