Rhode Island will become the tenth state in the United States to allow gay marriage after their General Assembly voted it in on Thursday. After the bill passed in the House with a 56-15 vote, Governor Lincoln Chafee is expected to sign it on Thursday night and then the law will be official. 

The House had to vote on the bill for a second time after passing it in January because of a few changes that the Senate made on it. Senate President Teresa Paiva-Weed, D-Newport, allowed a vote on gay marriage in the Senate even though she opposes gay marriage herself. Once the Senate approved the bill last week, it was only a matter of time before Rhode Island would join the nine other U.S. states in allowing gay marriage.

MORE: R.I. House Of Representatives Passes Marriage Equality Bill

House Speaker Gordon Fox, D-Providence, was one of the main proponents of the House passing its gay marriage bill for the first time in January, and is gay himself. Rhode Island was the last state in New England to allow gay and lesbian couples to marry. 

Hundreds of people are expected to gather at the Statehouse to celebrate the news. Even though the bill will be signed shortly, it won't be taken into effect until August 1. 

 

 

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