Minnesota's state Senate just approved marriage equality in a 37-30 vote. Gov. Mark Dayton will sign the bill, making Minnesota the 12th state in the nation to allow same-sex couples to marry and only the second in the Midwest, after Iowa. Minnesota couples will be allowed to make it official starting August 1.
This comes just six months after the state's voters, somewhat surprisingly, rejected a constitutional amendment that would have banned same-sex marriage. The state's Republican legislature had forced the measure onto the 2012 ballot, and in return, lost the measure and got voted out of office. The new Democratic majorities in both chambers made today's achievement possible.
Thanks, Minnesota, for striking another blow against bigotry. Now it's on to Illinois where the House has until May 31 to pass the bill that passed in the Senate on Valentine's Day.