The Presidential Candidates on the Freedom to Marry

With Labor Day behind us, the 2008 election campaign kicks into high gear. Alongside top-priority battles such as California's Proposition 8 (which would eliminate the fundamental right to marry for same-sex couples), the presidential campaign is commanding attention. Here is what the candidates themselves are saying:

Senator John McCain, Republican, opposes the freedom to marry and said "I don't believe in gay adoption." He supports the anti-marriage amendment in California.

• More on both Senator McCain and VP pick Gov. Sarah Palin

Senator Barack Obama, Democrat, supports "equality" for gay couples and their families, but has not explicitly supported (and at times has said he does not favor) marriage equality itself, preferring mechanisms such as civil unions. He supports repeal of the federal anti-marriage law (so-called "DOMA"), and has underscored believing "that the federal government should not stand in the way of states that want to decide on their own how best to pursue equality for gay and lesbian couples -- whether that means a domestic partnership, a civil union, or a civil marriage."

• More on both Senator Obama and VP pick Senator Joe Biden