Same-sex marriage bill likely to take a backseat in the upcoming General Assembly session. more ›

"To me, marriage is a recognition of love, and the state should not be in the business of discriminating," Emanuel said. more ›

State Representatives Greg Harris, Deb Mell, Ann Williams, Kelly Cassidy, Sara Feigenholtz and Sen. Heather Steans are in talks with Illinois organizations about introducing a bill that would establish marriage equality in Illinois, according to the Windy City Times. more ›

Opposite-sex couples in Illinois are opting for civil unions, in solidarity with gay couples who aren’t legally allowed to get married in the Prairie State. But it isn't the main reason. more ›

It's been just over a month since the civil unions law went into effect state-wide, and Illinois is seeing a lot of love. more ›

The first couple to receive a civil union license lined up at midnight outside the County Building for the privilege. more ›

Civil Union licenses go on sale 7:30 a.m. June 1. more ›

State Rep. Deb Mell, while happy that Gov. Quinn is signing the Civil Unions Bill into law Monday at the Chicago Cultural Center, told WBEZ that Illinois still has a way to go in the gay rights department. Mell still plans on traveling to Iowa, where gay marriage is legal, to wed her fiancée. "(We) sat down with our accountant recently to fill out forms and we had to check 'single,'" Mell said. "And that wasn't true." more ›

We have to hand it to Cardinal Francis George. He's a man of his convictions, especially when it comes to his stance on gay marriage. Even though his late hour plea to the General Assembly to vote down recognition of civil unions was for naught, George still feels he's right. Because, naturally, he has God on his side. more ›

It was a vote that years from now will be looked upon as a watershed moment in Illinois' gay rights history: the passage of the civil unions bill by the state legislature in November. more ›

Sometimes, though not often, a politician says what everyone wants said on the floor of a legislature. Ricky Hendon was the man with those words yesterday. more ›

Good Morning, Illinois. You're one step closer to recognizing civil unions for same-sex couples after the House approved of the civil union bill by a 61-52 margin. The bill now moves on to the Senate, where, barring last-minute lobbying from opponents, it's also expected to pass. more ›

In a move that surely won't endear him with the Catholic establishment, mayoral candidate Gery Chico said to a group of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered at Ann Sather's that he supports civil unions for same-sex couples and called upon the state legislature to pass the civil unions bill that is currently on the docket for the veto session. more ›

In Springfield, House Speaker Michael Madigan is the divining rod when it comes to the status of a pending bill. If he says that SB 1716, which will accord gay couples in civil unions the same rights as straight couples, has a good chance of passing in the state legislature's current veto session, it likely means the votes are there and Gov. Quinn would sign it into law if it passed. more ›

In a conversation with the Daily Herald earlier this week, Governor Pat Quinn affirmed his optimism that civil union legislation will pass in Illinois by the year's end - a crucial deadline of sorts for LGBT activists as they look toward a gubernatorial race whose polls have continually favored Bill Brady, who staunchly opposes such legal recognition of gay and lesbian couples. more ›

Would Illinois voters support gay marriage or at least civil unions? It's a hot topic, especially in the wake of the recent Prop 8 legal wrangling in California, and one that may not be resolved any time soon. But that didn't stop the Tribune from polling 800 "heads of households" in the six-county Greater Chicagoland area about their opinions on same-sex marriage and civil unions. Among their findings: more ›

• Former Univ. of Chicago law school professor Elena Kagen has been confirmed by the U.S. Senate by a vote of 63-37. The SCOTUS will have three female justices for the first time ever.
• Bad news for city finances as the city bond rating was downgraded.
• Erin Hughes, the New Trier High School student involved in a hit-and-run accident in which she injured another student, avoided jail as a judge sentenced her to two years of probation.

UPDATE: The folks over at Progress Illinois have since updated the original story (based on research done by Capitol Fax) which showed, "the State Senate never includes the original sponsor’s name in the 'Bill Action' section of resolutions, which would include constitutional amendments." So while Brady has indeed done some back-tracking on issues during the campaign season (as well as some strange alleged Wikipedia shenanigans), as outlined in the original post, this is not an example to be lumped in with the others. The post as originally published remains below. more ›

The issue of gay marriage will come to the forefront of Illinois politics for a brief period today as State Rep. Deborah Mell plans to address the state legislature about her engagement to her long-time partner, Christin Baker. The pair got engaged on April 10 but won't be getting married in Illinois. That's because there are no laws allowing gay marriage - or even civil unions - in Illinois. Instead, Mell and Baker plan to go to Iowa to be wed, but not before Mell brings up the issue to fellow lawmakers. Mell hopes to light a new spark in the battle for equal rights. Both the Equal Marriage Act (Senate Bill 2468) and The Religious Freedom and Marriage Fairness Act (House Bill 2234) remain mired in committee and likely won't see passage any time soon. Talking to Carol Marin on Chicago Tonight, Mell expressed her consternation. more ›

Recent months have seen a number of setbacks for gay marriage advocates, including notable losses in Maine, New York and - most recently - New Jersey, but Illinois activists have hit the ground running in their quest for same-sex civil union protections in the new year. more ›

State Sen. Heather Steans made headlines when she filed the Equal Marriage Act (SB 2468), a bill introducing the topic of gay marriage to the Illinois state senate for the first time, yesterday. more ›

With all the action over Prop 8 earlier this week, we admit that we lost track of the impending deadline of HB 2234 until stalwart reader Rich reminded us of it. Also known as the Illinois Religious Freedom Protection and Civil Union Act, it would recognize the civil union of two people, regardless of sexual orientation. It would also recognize a same-sex marriage or civil union performed in another state, such as Iowa, as a civil union within Illinois. While the deadline for voting on issues in the General Assembly for this session is Sunday, this specific bill has a deadline of today. We'll be tracking it this afternoon to see what, if any, action is taken. more ›

Today in Iowa, the same-sex marriage ban was officially lifted, meaning same-sex couples could apply for marriage licenses. A judge also waived the three-day waiting period for one couple, meaning they could get married today, the state's first same-sex marriage since the ruling. In the wake of these events, the Tribune has published an editorial in favor of civil unions in Illinois, which also coincides with a bill currently before the Illinois General Assembly. more ›

After the recent decision to allow gay marriage in Iowa, there's been cause for optimism amongst supporters in Illinois. Whispers grew a little louder on Monday when Gov. Quinn, speaking at Harper College in Palatine, indicated that a civil union law may not be far away for Illinois. Said Quinn: "I think that's probably where the legislature is headed in the state." With a civil union bill currently in the General Assembly, it's a distinct possibility. However, there are indications that a law allowing gay marriage isn't in the state's near-future. The Times and Democrat - a paper based out of South Carloina, of all places - addressed the issue this week. more ›

House Bill 2234, known as The Religious Freedom and Marriage Fairness Act, made it out of committee this week, and will now go before the full General Assembly for debate. The bill, which guarantees some of the rights and responsibilities to persons in civil unions that are currently granted to persons in civil marriages, including hospital visitation, the right to make decisions about a partners medical care, and survivors benefits. The bill gives religious institutions the right not to solemnize civil unions. HB 2234 does not legalize gay marriage. more ›

The arrest of Governor Rod Blagojevich yesterday may have been the final nail in the coffin for a proposal to allow civil unions between same-sex couples in Illinois. The bill, the Illinois Religious Freedom and Civil Unions Act, was first introduced in February of 2007 and has been stalled in the state legislature ever since. Now time is running out for the bill, as the current General Assembly will expire at the end of the year. With only two remaining legislative days left, some political watchers say it is unlikely that the proposal will gain traction as the state tackles a growing budget crisis that so far includes a $2 billion deficit. more ›