The US Senate voted to protect same-sex and interracial marriages on Tuesday, in a move aimed at preventing any roll-back of existing marriage laws.
The Respect for Marriage Act passed 61-36, which included support from 12 Republicans. It will now move back to the House for a final vote.
In a statement on Tuesday, President Joe Biden said, “With today’s bipartisan Senate passage of the Respect for Marriage Act, the United States is on the brink of reaffirming a fundamental truth: love is love, and Americans should have the right to marry the person they love.”
Senate leader Chuck Schumer said the vote was “deeply personal for many of us in this chamber.”
He addressed the Senate wearing the same tie he wore at his lesbian daughter’s wedding.
