Same-sex marriage, previously guaranteed by a Supreme Court ruling, must also be legalized in the US. A corresponding bill received a clear majority of 62 to 37 votes in a first vote in the Senate in Washington on Wednesday. This exceeded the majority of at least 60 votes required for the procedural vote. In addition to the 50 Democratic senators, twelve Republicans also voted for the text.
This clears the way for the final vote. In 2015, the Supreme Court upheld the right of same-sex couples to marry in a historic decision. However, after the Court of Justice, which has moved increasingly to the right in recent years, abolished the almost 50-year-old basic right to abortion in June, fears grew that same-sex marriage could also be endangered .
“Respect Marriage Law”
Commenting on the abolition of the fundamental right to abortion, arch-conservative constitutional judge Clarence Thomas also questioned the fundamental ruling on same-sex marriage. In July, the House of Representatives passed a law, the Respect for Marriage Act. It states, among other things, that all states must recognize marriages that were contracted in another state and are valid there. A law already classified as unconstitutional that defines marriage as a bond between a man and a woman will also be struck down.
The majority supports same-sex marriage
The conservative Republicans, with their blocking minority, could have blocked the bill in the Senate. After weeks of negotiations between Democrats and Republicans, an agreement was finally reached. After a final vote in the Senate, the text must then go back to the House of Representatives before it can be signed by President Joe Biden. A large majority of the American population supports same-sex marriage. However, the religious right strongly opposes same-sex marriage.
Democrats urged haste
The Democrats had been pushing for the legislation to be expedited because they currently control both houses of Congress. However, in last Tuesday’s midterm elections, the Republicans probably won the majority in the House of Representatives and the final result is still not certain. The Republicans should therefore take control of the House of Representatives at the beginning of January with the start of the new parliamentary year. The Democrats, on the other hand, managed to defend their majority in the Senate during the midterm elections.
Source: Krone
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