Candidate apologizes for comments on gay marriage

State Senate candidate Steve Rauschenberger of Elgin is apologizing for referring to gay marriage as "abnormal."

"In searching for a word on the difficult issue of same sex marriage, I chose the word abnormal," Rauschenberger said in an e-mail following a Wednesday evening Daily Herald editorial board session for 22nd District candidates.

"It was an unfortunate choice of words and I feel the need to personally apologize for it."

Rauschenberger's statements came after he and his opponent, incumbent Democratic state Sen. Michael Noland, were asked whether they supported gay marriages or civil unions, agreements that are legally recognized in some states and are designed to give partners in gay or lesbian relationships rights and benefits.

Illinois has not legalized either option.

Rauschenberger said he does not support gay marriages or civil unions. He said he believes the government only "has the right to sanction relationships that benefit long-term society." He said those are relationships between a man and a woman.

Rauschenberger said he did not feel a need for the state to "contractually elevate" other relationships to "normal relationships." When asked if he was calling gay and lesbian relationships abnormal, he responded, "yes."

"I think society has a vested interest in supporting traditional families but should be tolerant of people choosing alternatives," he later wrote.

Rauschenberger says he supports "equal rights" not "special rights" for gays and lesbians. He supports giving them the same guardianship, inheritance, medical trusteeship and adoption rights as heterosexual couples.

"I think people should be able to live reasonably as they want as long as they don't infringe on other people," he said.

Noland supports civil unions, and also says he believes gay and lesbian couples should have the same guardianship, medical inheritance, and adoption rights as heterosexual couples.

However, Noland said, he would not push to make gay marriage state sanctioned.

"I'm not sure the government should play a role in determining marriage period. It's a privacy issue. Individuals should decide to whom they are married."

If the issue came up for a vote, he said he would support the issue. "There has to be a dialogue," he said.

Noland said he didn't believe gay marriage "was an issue" to people in his district, which stretches across the Fox Valley, encompassing Elgin and Streamwood, and parts of Carpentersville, Hoffman Estates, Schaumburg and Hanover Park.