Voters Approve Same-Sex Marriage in Two States
Voters in Maine and Maryland have approved same-sex marriage, the first time that such measures have succeeded through a ballot initiative.
The states join six others and Washington, D.C., that allow same-sex marriage as a result of court decisions or legislative action, report the New York Times, the Washington Post and the Los Angeles Times.
Meanwhile, a ballot measure to allow same-sex marriage was leading in Washington State, report the Seattle Times and the Seattle Post-Intelligencer.
In Minnesota, supporters of gay marriage gained an apparent victory when voters rejected a state constitutional amendment limiting marriages to unions between a man and a woman, report the St. Paul Pioneer Press and the Minneapolis Star Tribune, citing an Associated Press projection. The state already bans same-sex marriage, but conservative supporters had hoped the constitutional amendment would prevent a change in the law. A group that supported the amendment, Minnesota for Marriage, is awaiting the final election returns and has not conceded defeat.
