Reacting to a lawmaker's introduction
of a gay marriage bill, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie on
Wednesday reiterated his opposition.
“I couldn't change my mind on that,
but I am in favor of making sure that homosexual couples have the
same type of legal rights that homosexuals couples have,” Christie
said.
Assemblyman Reed Gusciora, the
Legislature's only openly gay member, introduced a measure legalizing
gay marriage in the Garden State on Monday.
“They're talking about it in New
York,” Gusciora said. “Why aren't we talking about it in New
Jersey?”
New Jersey currently recognizes gay and
lesbian couples with civil unions, a remedy ordered in 2006 by the
state's Supreme Court. A push in January of last year to move to
marriage failed in the Senate, just weeks after the New York Senate
passed on a similar measure, and as Governor Jon Corzine's
administration wound down. Corzine had pledged to sign the bill if
approved by lawmakers.
Without Christie on board, proponents
need to secure a veto-proof majority in the Legislature to ensure
passage – an unlikely prospect given last year's vote.
Steven Goldstein, chairman of Garden
State Equality, the state's largest gay rights group, said the issue
is being pursued, possibly though the courts.
“Don't think that for a second, we
and others have not been at work behind the scenes preparing for the
next step,” he
told the Star-Ledger. “I can assure you the
conversation on marriage equality in the state of New Jersey is about
to blast off once again and will be center stage.”
On Wednesday, the
New York Assembly approved the gay marriage bill and sent it to the
Senate.