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Rep. Paul Ryan publicly reversed his stance on gay adoption for the first time on Tuesday. Reuters

Former GOP vice presidential nominee Paul Ryan has reversed his stance on gay adoption -- but not on same-sex marriage.

Ryan, a Wisconsin Congressman, who previously voted against allowing same-sex couples to adopt children in 1999, told Wisconsin residents at a town hall meeting Tuesday that he now regrets the decision, according to Think Progress. Ryan’s voting record regarding the issue was brought up by a participant who asked why he was so “adamantly opposed to allow gay and lesbian Americans to have equality under the law regarding marriage.”

“Earlier this month the Republican National Committee passed a resolution reaffirming their opposition to marriage equality for gay and lesbian Americans,” an audience member said. “You personally voted twice for the Federal Marriage Amendment and you also voted for the so-called Marriage Protection Act, and you voted to ban same-sex couples from adopting in the District of Columbia.”

On the subject of adoption, Ryan said, “I would vote differently these days.”

“That was, I think, a vote I took in my first term, 1999 or 2000. I do believe that if there are children who are orphans who do not have a loving person or couple, I think if a person wants to love and raise a child, they ought to be able to do that -- period,” Ryan said. “I would vote that way. I do believe marriage is between a man and a woman, we just respectfully disagree with each other on that.”

ABC’s Madison, Wis., affiliate station called Ryan’s reversal the “biggest surprise of the afternoon,” noting that he reportedly changed his mind about the topic several years ago but had never spoken about it in public before Tuesday's town hall meeting.

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