Over 101 California Candidates for state and federal offices have signed the Marriage Protection Pledge, announced Campaign for California Families on Wednesday.

The group began sending the Marriage Protection Pledge to candidates in 2002 and says that only those who sign the pledge can be trusted by voters to defend the institution of marriage.

“It is not enough for a candidate or elected official to say ‘I support marriage’ or ‘marriage is only for a man and a woman,’” stated Randy Thomasson, executive director of Campaign for California Families and author of the Marriage Protection Pledge.

“The real protectors of marriage will sign and abide by their Marriage Protection Pledge, which specifically addresses the rights, benefits and privileges of marriage, which is among the great battles raging in Sacramento and Washington, D.C.”

Campaign for California Families has been one of the leading conservative groups defending California’s marriage laws. In February, the group sued San Francisco Gavin Newsom for allowing some 4,000 same-sex couples to marry in spite of the state’s Proposition 22, an initiative defining marriage between a man and a woman. The California Supreme Court later nullified the same-sex marriage licenses, saying the mayor had overstepped his authority. CCF is currently defending the state’s marriage laws against several constitutional challenges.

In signing the Marriage Protection Pledge, candidates “pledge to protect and defend the institution of marriage” and “oppose all counterfeits to marriage with my votes, powers and privileges of public office. “

Signers of the pledge also agree to “uphold the pro-marriage, pro-child spirit of Proposition 22 and refuse to support ‘domestic partnerships,’ ‘civil unions,’ or any kind of relationship that compares itself to the sacred bond of marriage between a man and a woman.”

“Marriage is essential to civilization,” concluded Thomasson. “We have enjoyed its benefits from time immemorial. Through marriage we receive the bonds of kinship, and the progression of children and family through the miracle of procreation. It is unjust and unconscionable to rob marriage of its uniqueness by awarding the rights of marriage to people who aren’t married or who don’t qualify for marriage. We salute every candidate who signed the Marriage Protection Pledge and thank them for upholding the vote of the people of California.”

For the full text of the Marriage Protection Pledge and its signers, visit Campaign for California Families Web site, www.savecalifornia.com.