A bill protecting same-sex marriage in the United States passed a key stage in the Senate on Wednesday, following an agreement earlier this week between elected officials from both sides.
By a majority of 62 to 37, the senators, including a dozen Republicans, voted in favor of a procedural provision, a rare vote that crossed party lines, just over a week after the midterm elections.
In the United States, same-sex unions have been guaranteed by the Supreme Court since 2015. But after the high court’s historic overturn on abortion, many progressives fear that this right, too, could crumble.
Republicans continue to oppose the bill.
In mid-July, the US House of Representatives passed legislation to protect these unions across the country. All the Democrats and 47 Republicans had supported the text. But nearly 160 Republicans opposed it.
In the Senate, they had been negotiating for weeks to ensure the support of at least ten Republicans for the text, necessary for its approval by qualified majority rules. A group made up of senators from both parties announced Monday that an agreement had been reached on the matter.
This text “will ensure that LGBTQI+ and mixed couples are uniformly respected and protected by federal law,” President Joe Biden greeted in a press release.
A large majority of Americans support same-sex marriage, even in Republican ranks. But the religious right remains largely opposed.
Source: BFM TV
