Gov. Chris Gregoire has already voiced her support. | AP Photo Wash. state to be 7th for gay marriage

Washington state is set to become the seventh in the country to legalize gay marriage, according to a report Monday.

Democratic Sen. Mary Margaret Haugen announced she would be the 25th vote needed to pass the same-sex marriage bill out of the state Senate, The Associated Press reported Monday. The Washington state House already has the necessary support for the measure, and Gov. Chris Gregoire publicly announced her support for gay marriage earlier this month.


Washington would then become the seventh state to legalize same-sex marriage along with New York, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Iowa, Connecticut and Vermont. The District of Columbia also recognizes same-sex marriage.

“I know this announcement makes me the so-called 25th vote, the vote that ensures passage,” Haugen said in a statement, according to the AP.

Haugen said she made her decision after taking time “to reconcile my religious beliefs with my beliefs as an American, as a legislator, and as a wife and mother who cannot deny to others the joys and benefits I enjoy. This is the right vote and it is the vote I will cast when this measure comes to the floor.”

Gregoire announced her support at a news conference on Jan. 4, saying, “It is time in Washington state for marriage equality. It is time; it’s the right thing to do.”

The state Senate began considering the bill during a morning committee hearing, the AP reported.