The Illinois Senate will vote Thursday -- Valentine 's Day -- on whether to legalize same-sex marriage . Because Democrats have supermajority control of the General Assembly , the measure is expected to be approved . After the Senate vote , the measure would be considered by the House . Gov . Pat Quinn , a Democrat , has indicated he would sign the bill . If it is approved , Illinois would be the 10th state , plus the District of Columbia , to legalize same-sex marriage , according to Lambda Legal , a gay rights organization . Three other states are considering similar legalization , said Camilla Taylor , marriage project director for Lambda Legal . A bill has passed the Rhode Island House and has been sent to the Senate . A proposal has been introduced in the Hawaii legislature and another is expected in Delaware , Taylor said . `` All eyes are on us , '' said Taylor , who is based in Illinois . `` It 's looking great . We 're very excited about Illinois . '' On February 6 , Quinn said that `` marriage equality is a matter of fairness and equal rights under law . '' `` We took the first step towards marriage equality two years ago when I signed civil unions into law . Since that day , thousands of committed couples in 92 counties across our state have entered into civil unions , '' he said . `` Now is the time for the next step in providing equal rights to all people in Illinois . '' Five states , including Illinois , have civil union laws , according to Lambda Legal and the National Conference of State Legislatures . The others are Hawaii , Delaware , New Jersey and Rhode Island . The groups list four states as having some type of domestic-partnership recognition : California , Oregon , Nevada and Wisconsin . Lambda Legal lists Colorado as recognizing designated beneficiary agreements . Twenty-nine states have constitutional provisions banning same-sex marriage , the NCSL says . Polls show that legalizing same-sex marriage is gaining support across the country , although it remains less popular in some Midwestern and Southern states than in the rest of the country . Even Illinois Republican Party Chairman Pat Brady said last month that he supported same-sex marriage and urged legislators to vote for it . The move prompted criticism from conservative Republicans , including state Sen. Jim Oberweis . But Oberweis seemed resigned to Republicans lacking the votes to stop the bill . `` I hope that we resolve this issue sooner rather than later because the state of Illinois has some tremendous financial problems to deal with , which in my view is where we should be concentrating our focus and our time , '' he said .
A same-sex marriage law is expected to be approved in Washington , D.C . Democrats have supermajority control of the the National Conference of State Legislatures . Gov . Camilla Taylor , also a Democrat , says he 'll sign the bill . Illinois would become the first state legalizing same-sex marriage , plus Illinois .