Maryland passes same sex marriage bill.

A bill to legalize same-sex marriage won narrow approval Friday night in the Maryland House of Delegates, setting the stage for the state to join seven others and the District in allowing gay nuptials, the Washington Post reported.

The 72 to 67 vote, which followed a day of emotional and contentious debate, capped a dramatic turnaround from a year ago and all but assures the measure will be sent to Gov. Martin O’Malley (D) for his promised signature.

The bill passed with one vote to spare and moves to the Senate, which approved similar legislation last year. But Maryland voters could get the final say: Opponents are widely expected to launch a petition drive that could put the issue on the November ballot.

“We should extend to families, same-sex loving couples, the right to marry in a civil ceremony,” Del Maggie L. McIntosh (D-Baltimore), one of seven gay House members, told a hushed chamber Friday night after relaying her experience of coming out as a lesbian. “I’m going to ask you today, my colleagues, to make history.”

Maryland’s move toward same-sex marriage comes amid a fresh wave of momentum nationally for gay-rights activists.

Gay nuptials bills were signed by the governors of New York in June andWashington state this month, and a federal appeals court this month declared California’s ban on same-sex marriage unconstitutional. And this week, the New Jersey legislature sent Gov. Chris Christie (R) a same-sex marriage bill. Christie, who has said the issue should be put before voters, vetoed the bill Friday.

In Annapolis, O’Malley and other supporters scrambled in recent days to nail down enough votes to avoid a repeat of last year, when the legislation died on the House floor. After this year’s vote, an impromptu victory celebration spilled into the hallway between the two legislative chambers in the State House.

O’Malley’s efforts were buoyed by thesupport of two Republican delegates who announced their backing of the legislation this week: Robert A. Costa of Anne Arundel County and A. Wade Kach of Baltimore County.

In Friday’s debate, supporters hailed the measure as a major step forward in equal rights, with some relaying deeply personal stories. Opponents decried the redefinition of “marriage” and said it was an affront to long-standing religious traditions.

Kach told the chamber that his views on the issue changed after a hearing last week, when he heard testimony from same-sex couples, including some with children. “My constituents did not send me here to judge people,” Kach said.

In the hours before the bill passed, its prospects had appeared clouded by the hospitalization Thursday of a key supporter, Del. Veronica L. Turner (D-Prince George’s).

Both chambers of Maryland’s legislature are heavily Democratic, but the bill proved a tough sell among African American lawmakers from the party, including many Prince George’s delegates, who cited opposition by churches and constituents in their districts.
Twenty-six Democrats and 41 Republicans voted against the bill.

“Same-sex marriage is wrong,” Del. Emmett C. Burns Jr. (D-Baltimore County), told the chamber before the vote. “I believe that people who are gay have a right to be that, but the word ‘marriage’ should not be attached.”