In yet another sign that Republicans foresee defeat in the battle over gay marriage, Wisconsin Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen conceded in a recent interview that the state’s constitutional ban on same-sex unions may soon be overturned in court.

Despite emphasizing in a weekend TV interview that he would aggressively defend challenges to the ban, Van Hollen, who will leave office after two terms in January, said that in light of court decisions overturning similar bans across the country, it was likely that the federal and state judges addressing the two different suits against Wisconsin’s law would not side with him.

“I certainly won’t be at all surprised if we lose in our court here as well,” he told WISN anchor Mike Gousha.

Same-sex marriage is now authorized in 18 states and the District of Columbia. Twelve of those states authorized the practice via statute while in six states, same-sex nuptials were mandated by court decision.

In addition, 10 states are currently entangled in legal battles in response to court decisions striking down their bans. Those include some of the country’s most conservative states: Utah, Oklahoma, Kentucky and Texas.