Massachusetts lawmakers decided yesterday to postpone a vote on a constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage. During a joint legislative session, known as a Constitutional Convention, lawmakers decided 100 to 91 to postpone a vote on the amendment until two days after Election Day, November 9.
The proposed legislation defines marriage as “the union of one man and one woman,” and would effectively overturn the 2003 decision by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court legalizing same-sex marriage. The new legislation would not declare the marriage certificates granted under this ruling as void, but would not allow for same-sex marriages in the future.
The same tactic was used in 2002 to successfully avoid voting on legislation that banned same-sex marriages.
