Estonia Votes to Legalize Same-Sex Marriage
On Tuesday, June 20, Estonia’s parliament voted to legalize same-sex marriage, making the country the first Baltic state, and the first ex-Soviet state, to legalize same-sex marriage.The vote comes a week after Lauri Hussar, the president of the Riigikogu, Estonia’s unicameral parliament, announced the commitment from the country’s liberal governing coalition to legalize same-sex marriage within a month.The law will take effect on January 1, 2024. It does not need to be ratified by any other governmental body.In a 55-34 vote, the legislature amended the Family Law Act, which encompasses topics such as alimony, custody, and child support, to permit same-sex couples to wed.