‘Marriage for all’? Swiss voters to decide same-sex marriage

By JAMEY KEATEN
Associated Press

GENEVA (AP) — Voters in Switzerland are set to decide on Sunday whether to allow same-sex marriages. The wealthy Alpine country is one of the few places in Western Europe where gay and lesbian couples do not already have the right to wed. Switzerland has authorized same-sex civil partnerships since 2007. The Swiss government has endorsed the “Marriage for All” referendum. It says passage would put same-sex partners on equal legal footing with heterosexual couples by allowing them to adopt children together and to sponsor a spouse for citizenship. Opponents have argued that replacing civil partnerships with full marriage rights somehow would undermine families based on a union between one man and one woman.