Marriage equality is on a winning streak, and it may not be over yet: Illinois may soon join Rhode Island, Delaware and Minnesota in passing marriage legislation before the start of summer. But time is running out: The Illinois legislature has just until the end of this month to pass its bill.
Whether we pick up three new states or four, this summer is already slated to be jam-packed with weddings. But don't celebrate victory yet: There are still 37 states where same-sex couples do not have the freedom to marry, and winning them over is going to be even more difficult. That's thanks to constitutional amendments in states like Nevada. The legislature there is expected to pass a marriage equality bill this session, but even if that bill makes it past every hurdle between here and passage, the soonest it can go into effect is 2016.
A Supreme Court ruling could speed up that process. Depending on how the court rules, Proposition 8 could be definitively overturned in about a month. And although Prop 8 only applies to California, a Supreme Court ruling could potentially overturn bans on marriage equality in other states as well. In other words, we could win marriage equality in one fell swoop rather than having to wait and go state by state.
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