JEFFERSON CITY, Mo., April 23 (UPI) -- The Missouri House overwhelmingly approved a constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage and it will appear on the November ballot with Senate approval.
The state Senate approved a similar measure in February. The proposal that cleared the House Thursday had 40 co-sponsors, the St. Louis Post Dispatch said. The measure passed on 124-19 vote.
The ballot referendum would ask voters if the Missouri Constitution should be amended to define marriage as a union between and man and a woman.
Massachusetts will begin issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples early next month after the state Supreme Court ruled a law barring gay marriage unconstitutional.
Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, Oklahoma and Utah will have constitutional amendments banning same-sex marriage on their ballots Nov. 2. Lawmakers in at least nine other states are considering proposals to put gay marriage bans on the ballot this fall.
