Same-sex marriage in New York

Same-sex marriage has been legally recognized in New York since July 24, 2011, under the Marriage Equality Act. This law allows religious organizations to choose whether they want to officiate same-sex wedding ceremonies. The law does not require people to live in New York to get married there.

In 2006, the New York Court of Appeals decided that the New York State Constitution did not require same-sex marriage rights. This meant the State Legislature needed to decide. The New York State Assembly tried to pass same-sex marriage laws in 2007, 2009, and 2011. The New York Senate rejected it in 2009, but in June 2011, both the House and Senate passed the legislation. Governor Andrew Cuomo signed it on June 24, 2011, and it became law on July 24, 2011. New York was the sixth U.S. state to allow same-sex marriages.

In 2024, the Constitution of New York was changed to clearly ban discrimination based on sexual orientation, making the legal recognition of same-sex marriage even stronger.

Background

In the 1970s, members of the Gay Activists Alliance in New York City asked for the right to marry. They wanted the government to treat same-sex unions the same as other marriages.

In 2004, the mayor of New Paltz married 25 same-sex couples. Later, he faced charges for doing this, but the charges were dropped.

Many court cases were started to decide if same-sex marriage was allowed in New York. In 2006, the state’s highest court decided that New York law did not allow same-sex marriages. However, in 2008, New York began to recognize same-sex marriages performed in other states. This meant that same-sex couples married elsewhere could have their marriages recognized by New York state agencies.

Legislative history

After a court decision in 2006, leaders in New York began talking about letting people of the same sex marry. In 2007, a vote in the New York State Assembly showed support, but the Senate didn’t act on it.

In 2008, after the governor left office, a new governor promised to keep working toward letting same-sex couples marry. In 2009, another vote happened, but it didn’t pass. Many people kept speaking up about the issue.

Marriage Equality Act (2011)

Main article: Marriage Equality Act (New York)

In 2011, the new governor, Andrew Cuomo, helped push for a law to allow same-sex marriage. After many discussions and votes, the law passed. It changed New York’s marriage rules so that two people of the same sex could marry. The law started on July 24, 2011. The law doesn’t require people to live in New York to get married there, and it lets religious groups choose whether to perform these ceremonies. The first same-sex couple married right when the law began.

Aftermath of legalization

Reactions

Main article: Response to the Marriage Equality Act

When same-sex marriage became legal in New York, many people who support equal rights celebrated. Newspapers praised the decision, and pride events were held in many places. Some people who did not agree with the change planned to work against politicians who voted for it.

A few town officials decided they would not perform same-sex weddings because of their personal beliefs. Some stepped down from their jobs, while others asked others to help instead.

Legal challenge

After the law was passed, some groups tried to stop it by going to court. They said the way the law was passed was not right. The courts looked at their claims and decided that the law was passed correctly and did not need to be changed.

Political impact

Some politicians who were not usually for same-sex marriage voted for the law. After that, some of them faced difficult re-election battles. A few were not re-elected, while others managed to stay in their jobs for a while longer.

Economic impact

Leaders in New York City said that allowing same-sex marriages brought in a lot of money to the city in the first year after the law was passed.

Demographics and marriage statistics

Data from the 2000 U.S. census showed that 46,490 couples of the same sex were living in New York. By 2005, this grew to 50,854 couples, likely because more same-sex couples felt comfortable sharing their relationships on government forms. These couples lived in all counties across the state and made up 1.3% of all couples and 0.7% of all households. Most lived in Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Queens. People in same-sex relationships were usually younger and more often employed than those in different-sex relationships. Their household incomes were often higher, but they were less likely to own a home. About 20% of these couples were raising children under 18, meaning around 18,335 children lived with same-sex parents in 2005.

From July 2011 to December 2012, about 12,285 same-sex marriages took place in New York. The New York State Department of Health has kept records of same-sex marriages performed in New York (not counting New York City) since 2012, with Erie, Suffolk, and Westchester counties having the most.

The 2020 U.S. census reported 48,422 married same-sex couples in New York, with 26,428 male couples and 21,994 female couples, along with 35,096 unmarried same-sex couples.

Public opinion

The April 2009 Siena College Research Institute poll of likely New York voters indicated that 53% of voters supported same-sex marriage and 39% opposed it. The poll showed that registered Democrats supported same-sex marriage by a 59% to 35% margin, while registered Republicans opposed it by virtually the same margin, 59% to 31%. According to the Quinnipiac University poll released the following month, New York voters were evenly split—46% to 46%—on same-sex marriage. In 2010, The New York Times estimated support for same-sex marriage in New York at 58%, based on projections from 2008 and a nationwide CNN poll in August 2010.

Timeline

In February 2004, the mayors of two villages in New York, New Paltz and Nyack, announced they would perform or recognize weddings for same-sex couples. This led to legal challenges and debates about whether the state should allow such marriages.

Over the next several years, courts and lawmakers discussed the issue. In 2011, the New York State Assembly and Senate voted to allow same-sex marriages, and Governor Andrew Cuomo signed the law. On July 24, 2011, same-sex marriage became legal in New York. The first couple to marry under this new law was Kitty Lambert and Cheryle Rudd, who wed at midnight in Niagara Falls.

Timeline of civil suits for same-sex marriage

Several court cases have been filed over the years to support the right for same-sex couples to marry in New York.

In March 2004, five same-sex couples, supported by Lambda Legal, challenged New York's marriage laws. A judge ruled in their favor, but the decision was later overturned by a higher court. In July 2006, the highest court in New York decided that same-sex couples did not have the right to marry under the state's constitution at that time.

Other cases followed a similar path. In March 2004, ten couples sued to get marriage licenses. In April 2004, thirteen more couples joined a lawsuit, supported by the American Civil Liberties Union. In June 2004, twenty-five couples in Ithaca also filed a lawsuit. And in June 2004, two couples sought to have their earlier marriage ceremonies recognized. All these cases were decided against the couples, with courts upholding New York's existing marriage laws.

Lambda Legal Manhattan Doris Ling-Cohan New York Constitution U.S. Supreme Court Loving v. Virginia Nyack moot American Civil Liberties Union Daniel O'Donnell Rosie O'Donnell Rockland County Ithaca Tompkins Albany County

Native American nations

Same-sex marriage is allowed on the land of the St. Regis Mohawk Tribe. On July 3, 2019, they changed a rule to include same-sex marriages when deciding who can live there. Later, on December 21, 2022, the leaders of the tribe updated their rules so that marriage means a union between any two people, no matter their gender. This made same-sex marriage legal there.