A gay marriage bill introduced earlier
this month in Illinois may have a hard time finding support this
election year, The
Chicago Tribune reported.
The move to make Illinois the eighth
state to legalize gay nuptials comes less than a year after the state
approved a measure that recognizes gay and lesbian couples with civil
unions.
While the legislation is supported by
Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, Governor Pat Quinn has suggested the
measure is not ready for passage.
“You know in a Democracy, you got to
build a majority. So any development off of civil unions – we have
3,700 civil unions that have been performed so far in Illinois in 90
of our 102 counties. You know, it's a democracy and you have to
build majorities,” Quinn told WBEZ Radio's Steve Edwards.
Other lawmakers said the measure is
likely to be shelved this year.
“It's going to be a tough year to
pass any legislation that's outside of budget and pension issues,”
Democratic Senator David Koehler told the paper. “It's going to be
more of an election-year agenda in the state Legislature.”
The legislation was introduced in the
House by openly gay Representatives Greg Harris, Deb Mell and Kelly
Cassidy.
Harris told the paper that he was not
sure whether the measure would pass this year, then added: “You
can't get to the finish line if you don't start the race. We started
the race.”