RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring’s refusal to defend the state’s ban on same-sex marriage has become a pivotal issue in his re-election campaign.

Herring voted in favor of the ban as a state senator in 2006, but eight years later, as attorney general, the Democrat had a change of heart.

Herring’s Republican challenger, John Adams, has made Herring’s switch a constant source of criticism on the campaign trial.

Herring says he is unfazed by the criticism. He said his decision was right in terms of the law and right for Virginia’s families.

Herring, a former state senator, says he wants to continue the work he’s done during his first term, including focusing on the opioid overdose crisis and reducing a backlog of untested sexual assault kits.