Slovenia

Social Issues
The small Alpine state of 2 million citizens was relatively tolerant of gay couples who had been able to formally register their relationship since 2006.

Social Issues
Parliament passed a law in March 2015 giving same-sex couples the right to marry and adopt children, but the measures were not enforced because a civil society group called For Children appealed to the top court, calling for a referendum. In response, Slovenia held a referendum on the question on December 20, 2015, its second vote on gay rights in three years; the prior referendum in 2012 showed 55% of those were opposed. While the government supported the new law and did not participate in the referendum campaign, the main opposition party - the Slovenian Democratic Party - was against the law. A number of EU states had legally recognized same-sex marriages, including Britain, France, and Spain, but the issue remained contentious in many ex-Communist EU states.