Wyoming's house
of representatives voted down a proposed amendment to the
state constitution on Friday that would have defined
marriage between a man and a woman as the only legal
union recognized in the state.
A two-thirds
majority was needed to pass the resolution and move it to
the senate, but 35 out of 60 representatives voted against
the measure, named House Joint Resolution 17.
Wyoming law
already prohibits marriage by same-sex couples, but House
Joint Resolution 17 would have written that law into the
state's constitution, making the decision
significantly more permanent and difficult to reverse.
Representatives Cathy Connolly, Pat Childers, and Roy
Cohee were among the 35 representatives who rejected the
proposed amendment.
On receiving news
that the amendment had been voted down, Joe Solmonese,
president of the Human Rights Campaign stated in a release,
"We are grateful that the Wyoming house of
representatives stood up for equality and refused to
write discrimination into the state constitution."
(Neal Broverman/Shannon Connolly, Advocate.com)