Maryland Holdout Says Yes to Marriage

Maryland delegate Jill Carter is no longer holding hostage a vote for
marriage equality, saying important issues she wanted addressed have
been discussed and she's now ready to back the bill.

Carter, a Democrat, said she was ready to vote no on the bill Tuesday night because she wants $15 million in funding restored to Baltimore schools and passage of her bill to more evenly divide child custody for divorced parents.

"I was always ready to vote for the bill," she said Wednesday. "There were some things that I wanted to have discussed and I knew if we took the vote first, they wouldn't be discussed. They were discussed [Tuesday]. I was happy. I'm content and ready to vote for the bill."

Earlier, she said she was willing to take a hit for withdrawing her support if it makes a larger point about her favored issues.

According to the The Baltimore Sun, on Tuesday, Carter said she didn't see the need to "fast-track" marriage since the 90-day session is only about half over and lawmakers are in their first year of a four-year term.

On Wednesday, another potential holdout, Delegate Tiffany Alston, committed a yes vote to the marriage equality bill, saying she, like many other delegates, had wanted more time to weigh her final decision, but ultimately feels that “all people should be treated equally regardless of their sexual orientation.”

The marriage equality bill has already passed the Maryland state senate, and a vote in the general assembly was expected Tuesday night but failed to happen. A vote is likely this week.