A Michigan lawmaker is planning to introduce legislation that would repeal the state's ban on gay marriage, the Michigan Messenger reported.

Speaker Pro Tempore Pam Byrnes, a Democrat from Lyndon Township, said she will announce the effort Saturday at Lansing's annual Gay Pride event.

“The time has come,” Byrnes told the Michigan Messenger Friday. “I think attitudes are changing. We are seeing other states flip on this issue especially when you get the former Vice President Dick Cheney acknowledging same-sex marriages, then I think we definitely see a change in attitude and it's time to revisit this.”

Fifty-nine percent of Michigan voters agreed to place a gay marriage ban in the state's constitution in 2004. But support for gay and lesbian rights has increased considerably since then. A recent poll conducted by the Chicago-based Glengariff Group shows gay marriage support has swelled over the past five years to an all time high of 47% – nearly doubling the 2004 figure. When asked about civil unions for gay couples, three-quarters of respondents favored the idea, signaling strong support for gay rights in the state.

The bar to repeal a constitutional amendment, however, is high; it requires a two-thirds majority in both legislative chambers and approval by voters. Without a vote to spare, Democrats have the majority needed to approve the amendment, but it would face an uncertain future in the Republican-led Senate.

If successful, it would be the first constitutional amendment banning gay marriage to be reversed. Thirty states have adopted such amendments, including California, where the gay marriage battle is most heated. An amendment is more powerful than state law because advocates of gay and lesbian rights cannot fight such modifications through state courts, and most remain reticent to attempt a federal challenge. However, there are three federal lawsuits currently challenging the constitutionality of such amendments or federal law.

Gay marriage opponents called the lawmaker's effort a gesture, adding the amendment is unlikely even to come up for a vote.

“In the unlikely event it ever does come up for a vote, it's doubtful that even a simple majority of the House would vote in favor of overturning so recent a vote of the people,” Gary Glenn, president of the American Family Association of Michigan, told the paper. “It certainly will not get the two-thirds.”