Landmark legislation to protect same-sex marriages has been passed by the US Senate in a major show of bipartisan cooperation.
The bill, which ensures same-sex and interracial marriages are enshrined in federal law, was approved 61-36 on Tuesday, with support from 12 Republicans.
The passage of the bill signals a change in policy on same-sex marriages and will bring some relief to the hundreds of thousands of couples who have married since the 2015 Supreme Court ruling that legalized same-sex marriage nationwide.
The bill has gained momentum since the Supreme Court ruled in June that overturned the federal abortion law – a ruling that included a concurring opinion from Judge Clarence Thomas suggesting same-sex marriage could also be at risk.
President Joe Biden praised the bipartisan vote and said he would “promptly and proudly” sign the bill into law if it passes the House of Representatives, which Republicans won back in midterm elections earlier this month.
He said the bill will ensure that young LGBTQ people “will grow up knowing that they too can lead full and happy lives and start families of their own.”
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said the legislation was “a long time coming” and part of America’s “difficult but inexorable march toward greater equality.”
The legislation will not require any state to allow same-sex couples to marry.
However, it will require states to recognize all marriages that were legal where performed and to protect current same-sex unions, if Obergefell v. Hodges from the 2015 Supreme Court was to be overturned.
Republicans voting for the legislation included: Thom Tillis and Richard Burr of North Carolina, Susan Collins of Maine, Rob Portman of Ohio, Todd Young of Indiana, Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia, Mitt Romney of Utah, Joni Ernst from Iowa, Roy Blunt from Missouri, Cynthia Lummis from Wyoming, and Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan from Alaska.