Voting Station

James Obergefell

Please vote to return to collections.

Advocate

The Resume

    (circa 1967- )
    Resident of Cincinnati, Ohio
    Corporate consultant and real estate broker
    Married partner John Arthur, who was suffering from terminal ALS (Lou Gehrig's disease), in Maryland (July 11, 2013)
    Sued the state of Ohio to be listed as the surviving spouse on Arthur's death certificate
    District Court ruled in his favor (2013)
    Sixth Circuit Court reversed the decision (November 6, 2014)
    Consolidated for hearings before the US Supreme Court with three other same-sex marriage cases from the 6th Circuit: Tanco v Halsam (Tennessee), DeBoer v Snyder (Michigan) and Bourke v Beshear (Kentucky)
    Oral arguments heard by the Supreme Court (April 28, 2015)
    Supreme Court ruled 5-4 that the 14th Amendment required states to provide same-sex marriages and recognize same-sex marriages performed in other states (June 26, 2015)

Why he might be annoying:

    He and John got married on the tarmac of Baltimore-Washington International Airport.
    The case before the Supreme Court became known as Obergefell v Hodges, thus making him nationally known as a symbol for marriage equality, only because his case number was lower than those of the other three cases the Court heard.
    Although his name is linked to same-sex marriage being made legal nationwide, his case only addressed the question of whether states had to recognize same-sex marriages performed by other states. (Of the four cases, only DeBoer v Snyder directly addressed a state's ban on same-sex marriage.)

Why he might not be annoying:

    The Cincinnati City Council proclaimed a 'John Arthur and Jim Obergefell Day,' declaring 'John and Jim are a shining example of why LGB couples should be treated equally under the law in every state and the United States of America.'
    Their attorney Al Gerhardstein said, 'Jim and John are a compelling story. It's all of our stories, everybody dies.... No one else is forced to tell a lie on their death certificate.'
    After the Supreme Court's decision was announced, he said, 'This is for you, John.'

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 86 Votes: 55.81% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 9 Votes: 77.78% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 10 Votes: 70.0% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 1 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 5 Votes: 80.0% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 79 Votes: 67.09% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 23 Votes: 78.26% Annoying
    In 2016, Out of 5 Votes: 80.0% Annoying
    In 2015, Out of 185 Votes: 52.97% Annoying