Same-sex marriage begins in South Carolina despite lingering state ban

Same-sex marriage begins in South Carolina despite lingering state ban
(Image credit: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

A court in South Carolina on Wednesday began accepting marriage license applications from same-sex couples, even though the state still technically has a legal ban on gay marriage.

At issue is the Supreme Court's decision this week to not hear any appeals concerning gay marriage, including one from the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals, which has jurisdiction over South Carolina. That decision effectively legalized gay marriage in the five states that brought the legal challenges. But it also perhaps legalized same-sex marriage in six other states that are covered by appeals courts whose pro-gay marriage rulings were allowed to stand.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
Explore More
Jon Terbush

Jon Terbush is an associate editor at TheWeek.com covering politics, sports, and other things he finds interesting. He has previously written for Talking Points Memo, Raw Story, and Business Insider.