A French Senator became the first out gay Parliamentarian to get married on Saturday.

Luc Carvounas, a Senator, married his partner Stephane Exposito in Val-de-Marne on 11 July.

The couple had entered a civil solidarity pact, or PACS, three years earlier.

Exposito is the chief of staff to the Secretary of State for Women’s Rights Pascale Boistard.

Friends and family gathered on Saturday to celebrate the wedding, which has been celebrated as another step forward for France towards equality.

Among those attending was the Prime Minister Manuel Valls, who said it represented a “breath of liberty and tolerance.”

Saying he wanted to draw attention to his sexuality through making the marriage public, Carvounas said he had never made privacy a standard.

France legalised same-sex marriage in May 2013, following months of sometimes violent protests.