These 12 Republicans Voted To Pass Same-Sex Marriage Bill

Twelve Republican senators on Tuesday sided with the Senate Democrats to pass the landmark Respect for Marriage Act.

The Senate voted 61-36 to pass the bill, which would provide federal protections for same-sex and interracial marriage in the country.

It also avoided a filibuster again from the bill's opponents because it reached the necessary 60-vote threshold.

The 12 Republicans who voted in favor of the bill were Maine Sen. Susan Collins, Alaska Sens. Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan, Ohio Sen. Rob Portman, North Carolina Sens. Thom Tillis and Richard Burr, Utah Sen. Mitt Romney, Montana Sen. Roy Blunt, Wyoming Sen. Cynthia Lummis, West Virginia Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, Iowa Sen. Joni Ernst and Indiana Sen. Todd Young, The Hill reported.

The GOP senators earlier voted with Democrats to advance the legislation by invoking cloture, which was seen as a critical procedure to avoid being blocked by opponents.

Sen. Collins, who was part of the five-member group that pioneered the bill, rejoiced after the Senate voted to pass the legislation.

"Tonight, the Senate took a historic step to help prevent discrimination, promote equality and protect the rights of all Americans by passing the Respect for Marriage Act that @SenatorBaldwin and I authored," Collins tweeted.

Despite her personal belief opposing same-sex marriage, Sen. Lummis voted to approve the Respect for Marriage Act.

"Wyoming is the Equality State, and while I firmly believe marriage is a sacred union between one man and one woman, I respect that others hold different beliefs," Lummis said, according to The Hill.

The Senate bill will be sent to the House of Representatives for a vote before President Joe Biden signs it into law.

In July, the Senate bill was introduced after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the longstanding Constitutional right to abortion, which was established in Roe v. Wade.

Supporters of the bill feared that the 2015 decision legalizing same-sex marriage would be the next target of the heavily conservative court.

Collins, Portman and Tillis of the Republicans were joined by Democratic Sens. Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin and Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona to create a bipartisan bill protecting same-sex marriage.

In a historic move, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints supported the passage of the measure. The Mormons cited a provision in the bill protecting religious freedom, pushing them to support it.