A majority of Republican members in the
Maryland Senate said Tuesday that they would unite against a gay
marriage bill, the
Baltimore Sun reported.
The chamber's GOP caucus voted on an
official position on the issue.
“We met that threshold,” Senate
Minority Leader Nancy Jacobs said in a statement. “The caucus
expects extensive debate on this bill and we look forward to
discussions of why so many Marylanders are passionate about this
issue.”
A gay marriage bill has been introduced
in both chambers of the Legislature. House Majority Leader Kumar
Barve submitted the bill in the House, while Senate Majority Leader
Rob Garagiola and Senator Rich Madaleno are behind the Senate
version. Committees assigned to the bill in both chambers include
pro-gay marriage majorities.
At least one Republican senator has
publicly stated his support for the bill.
Senator
Allan Kittleman stepped down as Senate minority leader last month in
part over his dissenting opinion on marriage equality.
“I don't think it was a good move,”
he told the paper. “I think there are a lot of Republicans who
would want to extend equal rights to same-sex couples.”
The bill has 18 co-sponsors in the
Senate, where it needs 24 votes to pass.