Washington, D.C. & Seaside, OR — In an historic first, today Republicans at the Dorchester Conference — the nation’s oldest annual political conference — voted to overturn the state’s ban on marriage equality and declare their support for the freedom to marry.

“The Dorchester Conference sets the tone for the GOP in Oregon for the coming year, and I’m proud to have led Log Cabin Republicans members on the floor of the convention today as we made history and moved one step closer to making marriage equality a reality for committed same-sex couples in this state,” said Chairman of LCR Oregon and Co-Director of Freedom Oregon James Owens. “This wasn’t a vote against an anti-gay resolution, it was a vote in favor of freedom for all Oregonians — and a message to those fringe members of the Oregon Republican Party obsessed with pushing discriminatory measures similar to Arizona’s SB-1062 on the ballot in November. Today wasn’t just great — it was the absolute best outcome for Log Cabin Republicans, and a statement that Oregon Republicans are becoming more mainstream, less divided, and ready to win on issues like economic freedom, personal responsibility, lower taxes and a less intrusive government.”

Gregory T. Angelo, Executive Director of Log Cabin Republicans added:

Major congratulations are in order to Log Cabin Republicans of Oregon for the critical role they played in today’s vote. It’s grassroots leadership like this by Log Cabin Republicans Chapters across the country that are the lifeblood of our organization, and yesterday’s victory shows that we’re getting results from coast-to-coast.