Iowa’s supreme court has unanimously granted legal recognition to same-sex marriages!

More cool details:

  • The ruling will take effect on April 24, three weeks from today.
  • Two of the justices behind the unanimous opinion were appointed by Republicans.
  • The decision is based on the Iowa state constitution, so it cannot be appealed to any other court.
  • It appears that the earliest the decision could be overturned by constitutional amendment is November 2012. 
  • Such an amendment would require approval by the Iowa state legislature prior to a popular referendum.

The majority leaders of both houses of the state legislature can be expected to oppose any effort to overturn the decision by constitutional amendment — they released a joint statement today hailing the ruling as an example of “Iowa common sense and Iowa common decency.” 

It’s been a long, long time coming, but I know … a change is gonna come.