TILGHMAN ISLAND, Md. — Same-sex couples in Maryland were greeted with cheers and noisemakers held over from New Year’s Eve parties as gay marriage became legal in the first state south of the Mason-Dixon Line on New Year’s Day.
James Scales, 68, was married to William Tasker, 60, on Tuesday shortly after midnight by Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake inside City Hall.
“It’s just so hard to believe it’s happening,” Scales said shortly before marrying his domestic partner of 35 years.
Six other same-sex couples also were being married at City Hall. Ceremonies were taking place in other parts of the state as well.
The ceremonies follow a legislative fight that pitted Gov. Martin O’Malley against leaders of his Catholic faith. Voters in the state, founded by Catholics in the 17th century, sealed the change by approving a November ballot question.
Maryland, Maine and Washington state were the first states to approve samesex marriage by popular vote in November.
Same-sex couples in Maryland have been able to get marriage licenses since Dec. 6, but they did not take effect until Tuesday.
In 2011, same-sex marriage legislation passed in the state Senate but stalled in the House of Delegates. O’Malley hadn’t made the issue a key part of his 2011 legislative agenda but indicated in that summer that he was considering backing a measure similar to New York’s law, which includes exemptions for religious organizations.
Shortly after, Archbishop Edwin O’Brien of Baltimore wrote to O’Malley that samesex marriage went against the governor’s faith.
“As advocates for the truths we are compelled to uphold, we speak with equal intensity and urgency in opposition to your promoting a goal that so deeply conflicts with your faith, not to mention the best interests of our society,” wrote O’Brien.
In total, nine states and the District of Columbia have approved same-sex marriage. The other states are Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York and Vermont.
Front Section, Pages 4 on 01/02/2013