In fewer than 100 days, North Carolina voters will head to the polls for the state’s primary election, an important moment in which the public will consider an amendment to the N.C. Constitution that would define marriage as being between one man and one woman. Competing interests on this issue are gearing up for an intense and personal debate that put the state on the front lines of America’s culture war.

While a passionate discussion of this amendment is encouraged and should help voters make an informed decision at the polls, North Carolina should recognize the need to act with civility as the debate unfolds. It will be difficult to maintain some degree of decorum given the emotions at the center of the issue, but this state can show its best side with respectful discourse in the days to come.

Same-sex marriage is one of the more polarizing issues facing the nation, one often employed as a wedge to divide people and increase voter turnout for particularly high profile elections. Recall the numerous states that debated same-sex marriage bans in advance of the 2004 presidential election as many Republican legislatures used popular referenda to pump up “get out the vote” drives.

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