Mexican State Approves Same-Sex Marriage

Via the BBC:  Mexican state of Coahuila approves same-sex marriage

The northern state of Coahuila has become the second region in Mexico to officially allow same-sex marriage.

Coahuila’s congress approved changes to the civil code which give same-sex couples the same rights as heterosexual couples, including adoption.

In Mexico, laws on same-sex unions fall under state legislation, and a number of them have divergent rules.

In 2009, Mexico City became the first entity to legalise same-sex marriage, while the state of Yucatan banned it.

[…]

Apart from Mexico City, same-sex marriages have also been taking place in the southern state of Quintana Roo, with couples taking advantage of the fact that the state’s civil code does not specify sex or gender requirements for marriage.

Apart from the general significance of this issue, this is a good example of the fact that Mexico is federal.  This fact strikes me as worthy of note as I not sure many people realize that the US is not the only country with federalism.

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Steven L. Taylor
About Steven L. Taylor
Steven L. Taylor is a Professor of Political Science and a College of Arts and Sciences Dean. His main areas of expertise include parties, elections, and the institutional design of democracies. His most recent book is the co-authored A Different Democracy: American Government in a 31-Country Perspective. He earned his Ph.D. from the University of Texas and his BA from the University of California, Irvine. He has been blogging since 2003 (originally at the now defunct Poliblog). Follow Steven on Twitter

Comments

  1. Andre Kenji says:

    But in Mexico a marriage in one state is valid in another, ins´t it?