Post by Mestemia on Sept 1, 2005 23:31:16 GMT -5
By Joe Dignan and Amy Argetsinger
Washington Post Staff Writers
SACRAMENTO, Sept. 1 -- The California Senate voted Thursday to allow gay couples to wed, becoming the first legislative body in the nation to approve same-sex marriage without a court order.
The bill would recast the state's legal definition of marriage as a union between two people rather than one between a man and a woman.
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The vote is distinct from those in such states as Connecticut and Vermont, which more narrowly crafted the right to "civil unions" for same-sex couples while reserving the word "marriage" for heterosexuals. Massachusetts this year became the only state to grant full marriage rights to gay or lesbian couples, but only after the state's courts ruled bans on such unions unconstitutional.
California has emerged as a key battleground in the debate over same-sex marriage. In 2000, the state's voters approved the referendum defining marriage as a union between two members of the opposite sex. But early last year, San Francisco officials issued marriage licenses to more than 4,000 gay couples, arguing the new measure violated the state's constitution.
The state Supreme Court nullified those unions, citing state law. In March, a San Francisco judge hearing lawsuits from activists declared the law unconstitutional, setting up a battle that will eventually be heard again in the state's highest court.
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