SAME sex marriage is “not natural”, Traditional Unionist Voice candidate Alex Elliott has said.
The Ballinamallard man believes his party is standing up for Christian people in this election. 
As Northern Ireland is the only part of the UK where gay marriage is not legal, Mr. Elliott has insisted that opposing it is the right thing to do.
“I have been to nationalist estates, unionist estates, Roman catholic folk. Some of them say well done for standing up for what’s right. Same sex marriage is not natural, it is not in accordance with God’s law.”
Mr. Elliott added: “Some years ago the LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender) movement asked for tolerance, they got tolerance so now they want equality in same sex marriage and all that sort of stuff,” he said. 
He believes it now a case of “persecuting Christians for what Christians believe in.”
When it was put to him that his view could well be perceived as persecuting homosexuals, Mr. Elliott said: “I am not persecuting them, that’s not me, that’s God telling us his message.”
“I am taking abuse from people in Enniskillen for delivering that message. Where does the LGBT movement stop? Is it a case that they want to drive the Christian organisation underground by persecuting them?”
Last month thousands of men convicted of offences that once criminalised homosexuality were posthumously pardoned under a new law.
Mr. Elliott said it was “a sin to allow that to take place.”
The Fermanagh-south Tyrone candidate feels “sorry” for gay people.
“Not necessarily all gay people are committed to commit immoral acts,” he added.
But Mr. Elliott would not expand on what he meant by the remark.
“Do you want me to spell it out? Do you want me to spell it? I shouldn’t have to spell it out.”