Ellen DeGeneres Reacts to Gay Marriage Ban

By Stephen M. Silverman

11/06/2008 at 11:00 AM EST

The California-voter ban on Tuesday – by some 52 percent – of same-sex marriage has left Ellen DeGeneres "saddened beyond belief," she says.

In a statement posted on her show's Web site Wednesday, the talk host, who married partner Portia de Rossi in August, said, "This morning, when it was clear that Proposition 8 had passed in California, I can't explain the feeling I had. I was saddened beyond belief.

"Here we just had a giant step toward equality [with the election of Barack Obama] and then on the very next day, we took a giant step away."

Opponents of same-sex marriage in Florida and Arizona (where, in 2006, such a ban was rejected by voters) were also victorious on Tuesday, and by wider margins than in California. In all, 30 states have enacted bans on same-sex marriages.

Also on Tuesday, the Arkansas electorate passed a measure meant to prohibit gay men and lesbians from adopting children.

In her message, DeGeneres, 50, concluded by saying, "I believe one day a 'ban on gay marriage' will sound totally ridiculous. In the meantime, I will continue to speak out for equality for all of us."

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