Local
Md. House committee votes to advance marriage bill
Full House vote final step; governor has pledged support
In a dramatic turn of events, the chair of a committee in the Maryland House of Delegates cast the deciding committee vote on Friday for a same-sex marriage bill, keeping the bill alive and allowing it to go the floor of the House for a final vote next week.
Del. Joseph Vallario (D-Prince George’s County), chair of the House Judiciary Committee, indicated earlier that he would likely not vote for the bill. But he cast a “yes” vote on Friday when it became known that another committee member and co-sponsor of the bill, whose support faltered earlier in the week, would vote against it.
The committee voted 12 to 10 to approve the bill and send it to the floor of the House of Delegates.
The vote to approve the bill came after the committee defeated several proposed amendments introduced by opponents aimed at weakening or gutting the bill, including a proposal for civil unions.
“Securing a favorable committee vote was an enormous obstacle – one that we were able to overcome together as thousands of marriage supporters called, emailed, and met with their delegates,” said Morgan Meneses-Sheets, executive director of the statewide LGBT group Equality Maryland.
“But I’m hearing from our elected officials that out-of-state opposition is flooding their offices with slanderous lies about gay and lesbian couples and their families like never before,” Meneses-Sheets said.
She called on LGBT Marylanders and their friends and supporters to redouble their efforts to contact their delegates to ask for their support in the final vote expected next week on the floor of the full House of Delegates.
Vallario’s vote in favor of the Civil Marriage Protection Act in committee on Friday became the deciding vote allowing the measure to pass after Del. Tiffany Alston (D-Prince George’s County), a co-sponsor of the bill, voted against it.
Alston was one of three Democratic co-sponsors of the bill whose support wavered earlier this week.
Alston and Del. Jill Carter (D-Baltimore City) forced Vallario to cancel a scheduled vote on the bill on Tuesday when they failed to show up for the voting session. Both said their initial intent was to pressure the committee and Democratic leaders in the House of Delegates to devote more attention to other bills they believe were equally as important as same-sex marriage.
Following meetings and phone calls with colleagues and constituents, the two agreed to show up for a committee voting session on Friday. Carter said she expected to vote for the bill. Alston, however, told the Baltimore Sun she was praying over how to vote, saying her religious beliefs made her uncomfortable despite her decision earlier in the year to become a co-sponsor of the bill.
Meanwhile, Del. Sam Arora (D-Montgomery County), another co-sponsor of the bill who pledged support for same-sex marriage in his election campaign last fall, stunned LGBT activists earlier in the week when he said he, too, was having strong reservations over the bill based on personal religious beliefs.
Political observers say support for same-sex marriage is strong in his solidly Democratic and liberal-leaning district in Montgomery County.
Arora released a statement Friday morning, shortly before the committee session, saying he had decided to vote for the bill in committee and on the House floor, with the expectation that voters would ultimately decide the issue in an expected referendum next year.
“I have heard from constituents, friends, and advocates from across the spectrum of views and have thought about the issue of same-sex marriage extensively,” he said in his statement.
“While I personally believe that Maryland should extend civil rights to same-sex couples through civil unions, I have come to the conclusion that this issue has such impact on the people of Maryland that they should have a direct say.”
Carter voted for the bill in committee. She has not said how she will vote when the measure reaches the full House next week.
Sources familiar with the committee said one of the proposed amendments called for dropping the same-sex marriage language and converting the legislation into a civil unions bill.
The marriage bill won approval last week in the Maryland Senate.
Supporters were cautiously optimistic that the razor-thin majority of delegates in the House of Delegates who committed to back the bill just a few weeks ago would hold firm and not buckle under a furious campaign to kill the bill by a coalition of conservative religious groups, including the Catholic Archdiocese of Maryland.
Arora’s initial statements that he might not vote for the bill drew a firestorm of protest from LGBT activists and others in Montgomery County, who noted that his pledge of support for the marriage bill played a role in their decision to support him and contribute money to his campaign for his House seat in last November’s election.
“We applaud the Maryland House of Delegates Judiciary Committee for ending attempts to hold our families hostage to political maneuvering,” said Joe Solmonese, president of the Human Rights Campaign, an LGBT advocacy group that’s lobbying for the Maryland marriage bill.
“Maryland is at the forefront in the fight for equality and will go down on the right side of history,” he said. “We ask the full House to swiftly move forward to bring full equality to Maryland families.”
Marc Solomon, national campaign director for the LGBT advocacy group Freedom to Marry, also praised the action of the committee but cautioned supporters to continue to push hard with lawmakers in the days before the final vote.
The National Organization for Marriage, which is leading efforts to defeat the bill, has said it would take immediate steps to place the same-sex marriage law before the voters in a referendum if it passes in the legislature and Gov. Martin O’Malley signs it, as he has said he would.
If opponents succeed in obtaining the required number of petition signatures, such a referendum would appear on the ballot in November 2012 in the midst of the U.S. presidential election campaign.
District of Columbia
Blade contributor, husband exchange vows in D.C.
Yariel Valdés and Kevin Vega held ceremony at Jefferson Memorial on March 23
Washington Blade contributor Yariel Valdés and his husband, Kevin Vega, exchanged vows at the Jefferson Memorial on March 23.
The couple married in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., on Nov. 24, 2025. The Jefferson Memorial ceremony — which Blade International News Editor Michael K. Lavers and Samy Nemir Olivares officiated — coincided with the third anniversary of Yariel and Kevin’s first date.
Yariel in 2019 asked for asylum in the U.S. because of the persecution he suffered as a journalist in his native Cuba. He spent nearly a year in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody before his release on March 4, 2020.
Yariel wrote a series of articles about his time in ICE custody that the Blade published. The series was nominated for a GLAAD Media Award in 2022.
Yariel and Kevin live in South Florida.
District of Columbia
‘Out for McDuffie’ event held at D.C. gay bar
Mayoral candidate cites record of longtime support for LGBTQ rights
More than 100 people filled the upstairs room of the D.C. gay bar Number 9 on Thursday night, March 26, to listen to D.C. mayoral candidate Kenyan McDuffie at an event promoted as an “Out for McDuffie” meet and greet session.
Several local LGBTQ activists who attended the event said they support McDuffie, a former D.C. Council member, in his run for mayor while others said they had not yet decided whom to vote for in the June 16 D.C. Democratic primary election.
As of March 27, eight other Democrats were competing against McDuffy in the June 16 primary, including D.C. Council member Janeese Lewis George (D-Ward 4), considered McDuffie’s lead opponent. Lewis George also has a record of strong support on LGBTQ issues.
Most political observers consider McDuffie and Lewis George the two lead candidates in the race, with the others having far less name recognition.
The two lead organizers of the Out for McDuffie event were LGBTQ rights advocates Courtney Snowden, a former D.C. deputy mayor in the administration of Mayor Muriel Bowser, and Cesar Toledo, a local LGBTQ youth housing services advocate.
“I’m a candidate for mayor of Washington, D.C. and I’m running for mayor because I love this city,” McDuffie told the gathering after being introduced by Snowden. “And now more than ever we need leadership to take us to the future,” he said, adding that he and his administration would “stand up and fight” against President Donald Trump’s efforts to intervene in local D.C. affairs.
“Our strength is in the 700,000 beautifully diverse residents of Washington, D.C.” he told the gathering. “And as Courtney said, I didn’t just show up and run for mayor and then start saying that I’m going to be an ally for the queer community, for the LGBTQ+ community,” he said, “I’ve lived my entire professional life fighting for justice and fighting for fairness.”
Following his speech, McDuffie told the Washington Blade, “We’re going to fight to protect our LGBTQ+ community every single day. That’s what I’ve spent my career doing, making sure we have a beautifully diverse and inclusive city.”
He remained at Number 9, located at 1435 P St., N.W., for nearly an hour after he spoke, chatting with attendees.
District of Columbia
‘No Kings’ protests set for D.C.
Anti-Trump demonstrations to take place across country on Saturday
As President Donald Trump and his administration escalate rhetoric targeting transgender youth and student athletes, push efforts to restrict voting access for millions of Americans, and pursue foreign policy decisions that critics say bypass congressional authority, organizers across the country are once again mobilizing in protest.
For many LGBTQ advocates, the moment feels especially urgent.
In recent months, activists have pointed to a surge in anti-trans legislation, attacks on gender-affirming care, and efforts to roll back nondiscrimination protections as direct threats to the safety and visibility of queer and trans communities. Organizers say the demonstrations are not just about policy, but about defending the right of LGBTQ people — particularly trans youth and people of color — to live openly and safely.
Thousands of “No Kings” protests are planned nationwide, with multiple demonstrations set to take place in D.C.
One of the primary events, “No Kings Washington,” will be held in Anacostia, an overwhelmingly Black area of D.C. that is often at the center of conversations around racial justice, policing, and access to resources in the nation’s capital.
The protest in Anacostia is focused on what organizers describe as the “power behind the throne,” specifically Stephen Miller, the White House Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy and Homeland Security Advisor. Miller has been closely associated with the administration’s “zero tolerance” immigration policy, including the family separation practice that resulted in thousands of children being separated from their parents at the Southern border.
Activists have also linked immigration enforcement policies to broader concerns about LGBTQ migrants, including queer asylum seekers who often face heightened risks of violence and discrimination both in their home countries and within detention systems.
Anacostia protest details:
Participants are asked to gather starting at 1:30 p.m. on the southeast side of the Frederick Douglass Bridge. The closest Metro station is Anacostia on the Green Line, about an 8-minute walk from the starting point. Organizers strongly encourage attendees to use public transportation, as street parking is limited.
The march will proceed past Fort McNair and conclude near the Waterfront Metro station.
D.C. icon and LGBTQ activist Rayceen Pendarvis is set to speak at the protest around 2 p.m.
Kalorama protest details:
A separate protest will take place earlier in the day in Kalorama, a neighborhood long associated with political power and home to presidents, cabinet officials, and foreign ambassadors. Demonstrators are expected to gather at 10 a.m., with a march running until approximately noon near the intersection of Connecticut Avenue and Kalorama Road.
Arlington/National Mall protest details:
Another group is expected to assemble at Memorial Circle near Arlington National Cemetery at 10 a.m. before crossing the Memorial Bridge into D.C., passing the Lincoln Memorial and continuing on to the Washington Monument. Organizers say the march is intended to defend “American democracy, the rule of law, and a healthy planet.”
Unlike last June — when organizers discouraged large-scale demonstrations in D.C. due Trump’s military/birthday parade — activists are now explicitly calling on people to show up in the nation’s capital and surrounding areas.
The protests also coincide with Transgender Day of Visibility weekend, which includes additional gatherings and celebrations on the National Mall. At the same time, peak bloom for the National Cherry Blossom Festival is expected to draw large crowds to the city. With multiple major events happening simultaneously, officials and organizers anticipate significant congestion, increased traffic, and crowded public transit throughout the weekend.
Organizers are urging participants to plan ahead and come prepared.
“Bring your signs, noisemakers, music, and creative ideas, and gather in joyful, nonviolent protest,” they said. “Children are very welcome.”
For more information, visit nokings.org.
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