New Jersey State Senator Jennifer Beck
will co-sponsor a gay marriage bill when it is introduced, The
Auditor, a The Star-Ledger blog
on New Jersey politics, reported.
The Monmouth Republican previously
voted against recognizing gay and lesbian couples with marriage.
“She said she would vote to override
if the governor vetoes,” Senator Raymond Lesniak told the paper.
Democrats Lesniak and Senator Loretta Weinberg are the chief sponsors
of the bill in the Senate.
Coincidentally, Beck's new district
includes a sizeable gay population.
A 2010 effort to approve the
legislation fizzled in the Senate. Governor Chris Christie has since
threatened to veto a gay marriage bill, if approved by lawmakers.
In June, state Rep. Reed Gusciora, the
New Jersey Legislature's only openly gay member, introduced a gay
marriage bill. He has since called on Assembly leaders to take
action on the bill during the upcoming lame-duck session.
Gay marriage activists have returned to
court to win the right to marry in New Jersey, where a state Supreme
Court decision ushered in civil unions for gay and lesbian couples
five years ago.
Lesniak has not said when he will
introduce his legislation in the Senate.