Hawaii House to Decide Civil Unions

Hawaii's house of representatives will soon vote on a bill to legalize civil unions after the house judiciary committee approved the legislation with an 11-2 vote Tuesday.

The committee's vote came after nearly five hours of testimony, according to the Associated Press.

The upcoming vote — which could occur as soon as Friday — will be one of the final hurdles to a long-waged battle to legally acknowledge same-sex relationships in Hawaii. The state senate passed the bill in January.

Gov. Neil Abercrombie pledged during his election campaign that he would sign the bill if it reached his desk.