OLYMPIA, Wash. (MCT) — Democratic state Sen. Mary Margaret Haugen announced Monday that she supports gay-marriage legislation in Washington state’s Senate, giving proponents the 25 votes needed for passage.
The state House already has enough lawmakers in support of the measure to approve it. Washington Gov. Chris Gregoire backs the bill as well.
Democratic state Sen. Ed Murray, prime sponsor of the measure in the Senate, had thought he would have to put the legislation up for a floor vote without knowing the outcome.
That all changed Monday.
“I know this announcement makes me the so-called 25th vote, the vote that ensures passage. That’s neither here nor there. If I were the first or the seventh or the 28th vote, my position would not be any different,” Haugen said in a statement.
Murray praised Haugen as courageous, noting her district is divided politically.
Opponents have vowed to challenge legalization of same-sex marriage at the ballot.
“This is so much more than a legal debate,” Joseph Backholm, with the Family Policy Institute of Washington, testified at the hearing, arguing it should go to voters. “The institution of marriage does not belong to the Legislature. It belongs to the people.”
The National Organization for Marriage on Monday pledged its support to help mount a referendum campaign.
