Both supporters and opponents of the Michigan Marriage Amendment said they were surprised at the Michigan Board of State Canvassers' decision to reject a petition against gay marriage.

At its Aug. 23 meeting, the board, made up of two Democratic and two Republican members, deadlocked over whether to allow the amendment to be on the November ballot.

The amendment would alter the Michigan constitution to define marriage as a union strictly between a man and a woman.

The board certified an estimated 464,243 signatures, a number exceeding the required 317,757 to place the amendment on the ballot.

The two Democratic members of the board, Doyle O'Connor and Dorothy Jones voted not to certify the petition. O'Connor said at the meeting he would not certify the petition because he believed the amendment would hurt domestic partnerships.

"To do so would be unlawful for a couple of reasons. It would void existing opposite sex common law marriages in Michigan," O'Connor said during the meeting. "Michigan doesn't recognize the initiation of a common law marriage in Michigan, but it recognizes common law marriage commenced outside of Michigan."

Marlene Elwell, campaign chairwoman of Citizens for the Protection of Marriage, which gathered the signatures for the petition, said she was shocked when she heard the decision.

"They overstepped their bounds and it's outrageous," Elwell said. "The people in Michigan want to debate this issue."

Kelly Chesney, spokeswoman for the Secretary of State, said the board's job is to certify the signatures. If the groups feel the board was wrong in its decision, they can file a lawsuit in the court of appeals.

She also said that everything must be settled by Sept. 3.

"Because we have to get the ballots to the printers we have that deadline," Chesney said. "The courts don't have to adhere to that guideline, but they try to accommodate us."

Elwell said the group will try to pursue legal action to get the amendment on the ballot.

"We already filed an emergency appeal in the appeals court so we're taking the next step," Elwell said. "I'm sure we'll have a favorable hearing."

Opponents of the amendment also said they were shocked by the decision.

"We were surprised but happy," said Julius Zomper, communication director for Coalition for a Fair Michigan.

Despite the board's decision, Zomper said they believe the court will overturn the decision.

"Given the history of the previous cases and what's happened in the past, we believe this will pass," Zomper said.

Some MSU students say they were disappointed with the boards' decision.

"I'm not happy that we can't vote on same-sex marriages," interdisciplinary studies in health studies junior LaJoya Johnson said.

Although Johnson said she is gay and supports gay marriage, she still hopes the decision will be overturned in appeals court because she believes the people should be able to vote on it.

"I don't feel that the state should have a say in what should be a law in Michigan," Johnson said.