Jane Abbott Lighty, left, and her partner Pete-e Petersen raise their right hands as they take an oath while receiving the first marriage license for a same-sex couple in King County, Thursday, Dec. 6, 2012, in Seattle. AP Photo/Elaine Thompson

Today, gay and lesbian couples are able to get marriage licenses in Maryland and Washington states, the first where couples can get married after the landslide victories from the November 4 election.

Couples in Washington are able to get married starting today.  In Maryland, while couples can get their licenses, marriages equality does not go into effect until New Year’s Day. Maryland’s Herald-Mail explains:

Attorney General Doug Gansler issued an opinion last month allowing the state’s circuit courts to start issuing licenses to same-sex couples on Thursday — one month after the election — for marriages that can then take place after the law goes into effect Jan. 1.

If you are planning to get married in Washington, the Peninsula Daily News out of Port Angeles, WA put together a Q&A.

Maine’s marriage equality law will take effect on December 29. On January 1, gay and lesbian couples will be able to marry in nine states and our nation’s capital.

If you are getting married, tell us your love story and you could be featured on AFER’s blog.

Fairness and equality have won out over fear and prejudice. Voters in Maine, Maryland, and Washington have approved marriage equality, and in Minnesota they rejected a state constitutional ban on marriage for gay and lesbian couples.

• Find out when gay and lesbian couples get married in Maine, Maryland and Washington>

For the first time, voters have drawn a line in the sand and said to the nation: ALL Americans should have the fundamental freedom to marry the person they love.

For the first time, voters have rejected the specious claims that anti-marriage forces use to prevent loving gay and lesbian couples and their families from being treated with the equal dignity and respect guaranteed by our Constitution.

In each state, anti-marriage campaigns relied on the same harmful lies and distortions used in 2008 to pass Proposition 8 in California. But as AFER proved during the 2010 federal district court trial of Proposition 8, these stigmatizing arguments simply have no basis in fact or reality.

• Find out when gay and lesbian couples get married in Maine, Maryland and Washington>

AFER strongly believes that fundamental constitutional rights should never be put up for a vote. However, last night proved that the remaining barriers that prevent gay and lesbian couples from exercising their freedom to get married are crumbling fast.

With the Supreme Court poised to consider whether it will take AFER’s federal constitutional challenge to Proposition 8, the momentum for marriage equality has never been stronger.

And our victories for marriage equality are not alone. America has elected its first openly gay or lesbian senator, Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin, and retained Iowa Supreme Court Justice David Wiggins, who was targeted for joining the unanimous decision that overturned that state’s ban on marriage for gay and lesbian couples.

This is a great day for couples waiting to get married, their families, and for every American who believes in our nation’s commitment to equal rights for all.

Here’s when gay and lesbian couples in each state can get married:

Maine

December 29, 2012. Referendums in Maine take effect 30 days after the governor makes a “public proclamation of the result of the vote,” within 10 days after the result has been determined.

Maryland

January 1, 2013. This date was included in the original legislation passed by the state’s General Assembly, which was approved by voters.

Washington

December 6. All referendums that are approved by voters in the Evergreen State go into effect 30 days after the election.

And California?

The U.S. Supreme Court is set to decide the fate of AFER’s challenge to Prop. 8 on Tuesday, November 20. An announcement is expected by Monday, November 26.

If the Supreme Court hears AFER’s challenge, AFER attorneys Ted Olson and David Boies will make the case for marriage equality to the nation’s highest court. A final decision is expected by June 2013.

Or, if the Justices decide not to hear the case, the Ninth Circuit decision that ruled Prop. 8 unconstitutional will be made permanent, with marriages starting as soon as the Ninth Circuit issues its mandate, likely within several days after the Supreme Court denies review.

• Sign up for breaking news updates from AFER, the organizational sponsor of the Prop. 8 case.

Getting Married?

Share your special day with AFER to help win hearts and change minds for marriage equality.

• Tell us your love story and what you are planning for your big day. You could get featured on AFER’s website
• Register your wedding to help win full federal marriage equality.
• Make a gift in the name of someone you love who is getting married.

This election brought us an amazing victory. Until now, our opponents have kept pointing out that they’ve won every popular vote on marriage. But not anymore. With sixteen national surveys showing a majority of Americans support the freedom to marry, their winning streak is at an end.

If you live in those states, there is still time to get involved:

• Mainers United for Marriage
• Marylanders for Marriage Equality
• Minnesotans United for All Families
•  Washington United for Marriage

If you don’t live in one of those you states, there is still time to call voters from your home throughout the day to help get out the vote.   Sign up at www.20MillionMore.org

Be sure to follow AFER on Twitter and Facebook for the latest election results as they come in.

And if you are looking for your polling place, or a sample ballot, check out smartvoter.org.

Tomorrow the fate of ballot measures on marriage for gay and lesbian couples in four states will be decided. And the campaigns for and against marriage equality could not have been more different.

Find out what you can do for each state at AFER’s Election Center.

In Maine, Maryland, Minnesota and Washington, campaigns based on the same anti-gay playbook used to pass California’s Proposition 8 in 2008 have attempted to sway voters using nothing but fear and prejudice. Even though AFER’s bipartisan legal team, led by distinguished co-counsel Ted Olson and David Boies, dismantled these specious claims in federal court, the anti-marriage campaigns continue to rely on harmful lies about gay and lesbian Americans in order to prevent loving couples from getting married.

By contrast, the campaigns for fairness and equality are based on acceptance and love.

While AFER firmly believes that fundamental civil rights should never be put up to vote, when marriage equality is on the ballot, it is incumbent on each of us to ensure that our gay and lesbian neighbors are not denied the freedom to marry the person they love.

Regardless of what happens tomorrow, we can all be proud of the work that has been done in these states. Conversations about why marriage equality is important for ALL Americans have continued to open hearts and change minds unlike ever before.

It’s unbelievable to me that people’s lives and relationships are literally being voted on in a matter of days.

In Maine, Maryland, Minnesota and Washington, voters will go to the polls to decide if gay and lesbian couples – our friends and neighbors – are worthy of the same protections as everyone else.

But that’s the system we have and I’m not going to back down from the fight for loving and committed couples to have the ability to marry. Especially when groups like the Human Rights Campaign are fighting these battles day-in and day-out.

So, here’s what I’m going to do. If you make a contribution to these ballot measure campaigns in the next 24 hours, I’ll double it – every dollar of the way, up to $100,000.

This is our last chance to make a difference. If you’re like me, you don’t want to have to ask yourself on the day after the election, what else could I have done?

So what are you waiting for?! Donate today and Brad Pitt will match your contribution to marriage equality.

Here are clips from Brad at the LA premiere of “8”:

A new anti-gay ad just launched in Washington, and it’s a carbon-copy of the same misleading, hurtful messages that they’ve run year after year in other states. But the Prop 8 trial changed things. That trial was like a freedom-to-marry truth commission, where we put all of their misleading claims on the stand and examined them piece by piece. And of course, AFER’s expert legal team demolished all of those arguments.

Let’s take a look at the new Washington ad and break it down.

Another ruling against the Defense of Marriage Act marks the anti-gay law’s eighth consecutive loss in court. Also this week, a former Prop. 8 supporter releases a new video explaining his change of heart. And polling on marriage in key states remains very close just days out from the election.

In this week’s episode of Marriage News Watch: An anti-gay ad in Washington is re-using discredited misinformation from other states. We’ll have a side-by-side comparison. New polling shows us with a healthy lead in several states, but some of the numbers don’t quite add up. And new protections from the Obama administration could save LGBT couples from forced deportation.