A Republican lawmaker in Illinois has announced his support for gay marriage.

Rep. Ed Sullivan Jr. of Mundelein is the chairman of the House Republican Campaign Organization. He is the first among party leadership to support gay marriage in Illinois. He says his mother-in-law’s involvement in a same-sex relationship prompted his support.

With House lawmakers returning to Springfield Monday after a two week break, supporters say they are now within a dozen votes of the six needed to pass a measure to legalize gay marriage.

Sullivan says his stance represents a personal and family evolution on the issue. Sullivan says his new stance is all about treating people fairly.

Rep. Ron Sandack of Downers Grove is the only other house republican to support the same-sex marriage bill, which has already passed the State Senate.

Chicago’s Francis Cardinal George joined a number of African-American pastors Friday to voice their opposition to legalizing same-sex marriage in Illinois.

The cardinal said legally changing the biblical meaning of marriage will not serve the common good of people, and will lose the sense of family that is the basis of who we are as a society.

“Not every love, not every friendship is marital. So you have to ask, as I think my brother pastors have asked, ‘What is the nature of marriage?’ And that goes back to a sexual expression that’s based upon the complementarity of men and women, and is the way in which the future of the human race is assured. And anything outside of that is morally wrong,” George said.

The cardinal and the group of pastors said they had to speak out because staying silent, they said, would make them appear as if they were condoning the legalization of same-sex marriage.

Gay marriage in Illinois has cleared a House committee by a 6-5 vote.

It will now move to a full House vote, where it could meet its strongest opposition.

The measure would allow marriage between two people, instead of just between a man and a woman.

The Senate has already passed it.

Governor Quinn says he plans to sign it into law.

Illinois would then become the 10th state to allow gay marriage.

The Marriage Equality Amendment passed out of committee in the Illinois senate tonight.

The measure would legalize same sex marriage in Illinois.  It passed with an 8 to 5 vote, and now heads to the full senate floor.

A rally in support of marriage equality is planned for Saturday at noon outside the Thompson center.

Cook County Clerk David Orr today issued a statement about the legislation that reads in part, “I look forward to quick passage, and to issuing marriage licenses in 2013 to all couples who wish to marry – whether they are gay or straight.”

Chicago’s Cardinal Francis George is urging Catholics to speak out against a same-sex marriage bill.

He wrote a letter asking parishioners to call their state legislators and voice opposition to the legislation.

Cardinal George says civil laws that establish same-sex marriage create a “legal fiction,” and that the state does not have the power to create something that nature itself says is impossible.

A plan to introduce a bill legalizing same sex marriage in Illinois was held up by a procedural vote within the Illinois State Senate committee.

Supporters needed 30 votes to waive a 6 day posting requirement Wednesday. They only got 28.

According to the bill’s sponsor, two same sex marriage supporters were absent Wednesday night.  Backers are hoping they’ll be able to move forward today as legislators convene in Springfield.

In a show of support Wednesday, Lt. Governor Shiela Simon met with several state legislators and actor Jesse Tyler Ferguson to urge the bill’s passage in Springfield.

If passed, Illinois would become the 10th state to legalize same sex marriage.

There is also strong opposition to the measure. Chicago’s Cardinal Francis George issued a letter asking Catholics to call their legislators and speak out against the bill. The Cardinal calls same sex marriage a legal fiction and a violation of natural law.

As Illinois lawmakers get ready to vote on a bill legalizing same-sex marriage, opponents and supporters are turning up the heat on legislators to vote their way.

“Modern Family” star Jesse Tyler Ferguson joined Illinois Lt. Gov. Sheila Simon and openly-gay state representatives Deborah Mell (D-Chicago) and Kelly Cassidy (D-Chicago) at the Thompson Center Wednesday to urge support for gay marriage legislation.

A bill on the issue is expected to be introduced in Springfield this week.

Chicago’s Cardinal Francis George is urging Catholics to speak out against a same-sex marriage bill.

He wrote a letter asking parishioners to call their state legislators and voice opposition to the legislation.

Cardinal George says civil laws that establish same-sex marriage create a “legal fiction,” and that the state does not have the power to create something that nature itself says is impossible.

Simon responded by saying many older couples do not marry to procreate, and that couples with fertility problems may turn to adoption which, by the Cardinal’s definition, may also be labelled a “legal fiction.”

A procedural delay is currently holding up an Illinois State Senate committee from holding a hearing on a bill that would legalize same sex marriage in Illinois.
But backers are hoping they’ll be able to move forward tomorrow as legislators convene in Springfield.
In a show of support earlier today, Lt Governor Shiela Simon met with several state legislators and actor Jesse Tyler Ferguson to urge the bill’s passage in Springfield.
If passed, Illinois would become the 10th state to legalize same sex marriage.
There is also strong opposition to the measure.
Chicago’s Cardinal Francis George issued a letter asking Catholics to call their legislators and speak out against the bill.
The Cardinal calls same sex marriage a legal fiction and a violation of natural law.

Cardinal Francis George issued a letter today urging Catholics to the oppose gay marriage bill.

“Civil laws that establish ‘same sex marriage’ create a legal fiction,” George wrote in the letter. “The State has no power to create something that nature itself tells us is impossible.”

The Illinois general assembly may vote this week on a same-sex marriage bill.

The Cardinal is urging his flock to contact law makers and voice their opposition.

State senator Heather Steans calls her bill the “religious freedom and marriage fairness act.”

But Cardinal Francis George and other Catholic leaders say gay marriage violates natural law.

More than 250 members of Illinois clergy,  mostly Protestant and Jewish, endorse the gay marriage bill  and in a statement from the White House  President  Obama says he would vote for legalizing same-sex marriage if he were still a state senator.

Read the full letter from Cardinal Francis George here

President Obama is calling on Illinois to legalize gay marriage.

And the timing is crucial for state representative Greg Harris,  who looks for a vote on  marriage equality in Springfield in the next week, just two months after voters Maine, Maryland and Washington state approved same sex marriage laws.

Citing the president’s stance, the White House said, “Were the president still in the Illinois state legislature, he would support this measure that would treat all Illinois couples equally.”

But conservative Chicago democrat Representative Joe Lyons, says the president’s view won’t change his vote against the marriage bill.

WGN’s Sean Lewis has the full story.