On Wednesday, Gov. Andrew Cuomo met with same-sex marriage proponents to lay out a strategy going forward to make their shared goal a reality. In the aftermath of the meeting, the governor said it was one of many meetings that will be held and argued that the current limit on same-sex marriage isn't fair.
"To me this is more than just a piece of legislation. This is about the lives of people who I have known for many years, who currently are without the rights to which they are entitled. I look forward to working with lawmakers and stakeholders to make sure that New York joins the growing number of states that allow the freedom to marry for all couples," said Cuomo.
His biggest obstacle, though, is a Senate that has continuously failed to pass this measure. Most recently it failed by a vote of 24-38, with Democrats squandering their slim majority.
Now, with Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos, R-Rockville Centre, promising that the measure could come up for a vote, its time to re-examine the bill's chances. We'll start by examining the views of a freshman Sen. Lee Zeldin, R-Long Island, who succeeded Democrat Brian Foley, who voted for the measure.
When Foley did vote for the measure, Zeldin announced that he would have opposed the measure. "Personally, I happen to believe that marriage should be defined as between a man and woman… And I know many people who are gay and that is their business and I respect that," wrote Zeldin when the measure failed.
This means that Zeldin is a no. Stay tuned for additional installments of "Chance of Marriage?" as we wait for a same-sex marriage bill to be introduced.
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