Voters in Slovenia on Sunday rejected a law [results, in Slovenian] that would have allowed same-sex couples to marry and adopt children. The measure was defeated by a large margin [CNN report], with more than 63 percent of voters rejecting the legislation, although voter turnout was only about 36 percent. The vote came as the result of a petition to overturn a same-sex marriage law passed [JURIST report] by the Slovenian Parliament [official website] in March. The legislation’s defeat is a victory for Catholic conservatives, but rights groups such as Amnesty Slovenia expressed disappointment [press release, in Slovenian] with the results.

The rights of same-sex couples have been an ongoing issue across Europe. Legislation that sought to expand same-sex couples’ rights in Slovenia was rejected by referendum [JURIST report] three years ago. In February Slovakia failed to pass [JURIST report] a referendum banning same-sex marriage. In January France allowed [JURIST report] a same-sex French-Moroccan couple to marry although Morocco refuses to recognize marriage between two men. France legalized same-sex marriage in 2013. Also in January Macedonia banned same-sex marriage [JURIST report] by defining marriage as between a man and a woman.