Jim Urquhart / Reuters Isaac Troyo, left, and his partner Jed Mecham get married at the Salt Lake County Government Building in Salt Lake City, Utah, Dec. 23, 2013.

Utah state authorities asked the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday to suspend same-sex unions. Gay marriages in the majority-Mormon state became legal on Dec. 20 when a district judge ruled against a voter-approved ban.

The Utah papers were filed with Justice Sonia Sotomayor. who can act by herself or involve the rest of the Supreme Court when dealing with emergency requests from Utah and other Rocky Mountain states.

“Each [same-sex marriage] is an affront not only to the interests of the state and its citizens in being able to define marriage through ordinary democratic channels, but also to this court’s unique role as final arbiter,” said the Utah petition, reports the AP.

[AP]