New Jersey LGBT Law

ANNAPOLIS— The speaker of Maryland’s House vowed that Democrats would try again next year to pass legislation legalizing gay marriage, but the intense lobbying by faith groups against the measure in recent weeks shows that it won’t be easy, even in a state known for its liberal politics.

A loose coalition of Democratic legislators failed to cobble together enough votes to overcome opposition from Republicans and religious groups, including the Catholic church and many black congregations, to make Maryland the sixth state to legalize gay marriage.

Lawmakers had planned to vote on the bill in the House, but it was withdrawn instead Friday and effectively killed for the year.

Opposition from some religious groups grew after the Senate narrowly passed its version of the measure Feb. 24. Then some black Democratic lawmakers withdrew their support, while freshman legislators had trouble determining what constituents wanted.

House leaders didn’t rely on a traditional whipping operation to line up votes on a hot-button social issue, even after Republicans gains last year.

The bill’s withdrawal bitterly disappointed gay marriage supporters who said they had appeared close to a major victory after the Senate, considered the more conservative of Maryland’s two Democratic-controlled chambers, approved a similar proposal.

Same-sex marriage is legal in Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont and the District of Columbia. Rhode Island lawmakers are debating legislation to legalize same-sex marriage.

But the Maryland bill hit trouble in the House two weeks ago after a committee had to delay a series of votes on the issue and some Democrats, including in the black community, began wavering. It ended with Busch and his lieutenants deciding it was better to save a final vote for next year, rather than put delegates on the record with a failed vote this year.

Even if the bill had passed, there was a chance that it could have been put to voters in a referendum. Under Maryland law, citizens who gather enough signatures can petition for their right to vote on laws passed by legislators.

The issue divided the state’s top three political leaders, all Catholic Democrats. While Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller opposed legalizing gay marriage, Busch and Gov. Martin O’Malley supported it.

Catholic officials, led by The Maryland Catholic Conference, coordinated much of the opposition. After the Senate voted, leading bishops in Maryland signed a letter urging Catholics to contact their legislators and insisting the debate was not over, according to the Catholic News Service.