The Washington state Senate approved Senate Bill 6239 [materials] to legalize same-sex marriage by a vote of 28–21 late Wednesday evening. Washington currently grants expanded domestic partnership rights rather than full marriage or civil union rights to same-sex couples. Several amendments affording protection of religious objection to same-sex marriage were added to the bill in debate. Others, that would have triggered a referendum on the issue, and would have allowed marriage-related business owners’ ability to discriminate against same-sex couples, were rejected.