Ted Olson, a conservative lawyer, whose work to overturn California’s ban on same-sex marriage created an unexpected legacy, died on Nov. 13.

Olson, who was straight, died at a hospital in Falls Church, Va. No cause of death was given. He was 84. 

Log Cabin Republicans released a statement saying they were saddened to hear of Olson’s passing, but thankful for his leadership. 

“Ted was a longtime advocate for welcoming LGBT conservatives into the Republican Party and ally to the Log Cabin organization,” LCR President Charles Moran said. “Most notably, he played a principled and critical role in the legal effort to overturn California’s gay marriage ban, arguing against Proposition 8 in court and paving the way for the Supreme Court’s historic decision in Obergefell v Hodges, making marriage equality the law of the land.” 

Prior to the Prop 8 trial, Olson was part of former President George W. Bush’s legal team during the infamous 2000 Florida recount, which ultimately handed Bush the presidency. Bush would go on to appoint Olson Solicitor General. 

LGBTQ activists were skeptical when Olson took on Proposition 8, which California voters had approved by 52% in the 2008 election. Instead, Olson argued conservatives should consider the value same-sex marriages bring to society. 

“It is a conservative value to respect the relationship that people seek to have with one another, a stable, committed relationship that provides a backbone for our community, for our economy,” Olson told the Los Angeles Times. 

When the federal trial commenced in 2010, Olson insisted Prop 8 unfairly stigmatized gays and lesbians as unequal, disfavored and inferior. 

“It classifies them as outcasts,” he said in his opening statement. “It causes needless and unrelenting pain and isolation and humiliation.”

The court sided with Olson, ruling Prop 8 violated the guarantee of equal protection under the law.