US states approve gay marriage, marijuana use
8 Nov 2012 6:36 AM IST
Voters a continent apart made history on two divisive social issues, with Maine and Maryland becoming the first states to approve same-sex marriage by popular vote, while Washington state and Colorado legalised recreational use of marijuana.
The outcome in Maine and Maryland broke a 32-state streak, dating back to 1998, in which gay marriage had been rebuffed by every state that voted on it. They will become the seventh and eighth states to allow same-sex couples to marry.
‘For the first time, voters in Maine and Maryland voted to allow loving couples to make lifelong commitments through marriage - forever taking away the right-wing talking point that marriage equality couldn't win on the ballot,’ said Chad Griffin of the Human Rights Campaign, a national gay-rights group.
Washington state also was voting on measures to legalise same-sex marriage, while Minnesota voters were considering a conservative-backed amendment that would place a ban on same-sex marriage in the state constitution. The marijuana measures in Colorado and Washington set up a showdown with the federal government, which outlaws the drug.
The outcome in Maine and Maryland broke a 32-state streak, dating back to 1998, in which gay marriage had been rebuffed by every state that voted on it. They will become the seventh and eighth states to allow same-sex couples to marry.
‘For the first time, voters in Maine and Maryland voted to allow loving couples to make lifelong commitments through marriage - forever taking away the right-wing talking point that marriage equality couldn't win on the ballot,’ said Chad Griffin of the Human Rights Campaign, a national gay-rights group.
Washington state also was voting on measures to legalise same-sex marriage, while Minnesota voters were considering a conservative-backed amendment that would place a ban on same-sex marriage in the state constitution. The marijuana measures in Colorado and Washington set up a showdown with the federal government, which outlaws the drug.
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