Chris Anderson (politician)

Anderson proposed an equal domestic partnership benefits ordinance which the city council passed on November 12, 2013, in a 5–4 vote in favor of allowing domestic partnership benefits for same-sex couples in the city of Chattanooga.^[8] On November 19, 2013, the city council in a final vote, voted 5–3 in favor of allowing domestic partnership benefits.^[9] Before the domestic partnership ordinance went into effect,^[10] the Citizens for Government Accountability and Transparency, a local segment of the Tea Party, gathered enough signatures to put repeal of the ordinance to a popular vote in August 2014.^[11][12] The city council did not repeal the ordinance on its own, allowing the vote to proceed on August 7, the general election date for Hamilton County.^[13]

On August 7, 2014, the voters of Chattanooga repealed Ordinance 12781 by a vote of 62.58% in favor and 37.42% against.^[14]

Anderson was the subject of a controversial 2014 recall effort which failed.^[15] Anderson filed a lawsuit to stop the recall accusing his opponents of bigotry because he felt the recall effort was part of a political backlash to his Domestic Partnership Ordinance.^[16]