A US federal judge in Virginia has ruled that the state’s ban on same-sex marriage is unconstitutional.
It is the first time that a southern state has had a voter-approved prohibition on gay marriage overturned.
The ruling will not apply pending a possible appeal. Same-sex marriages are legal in 17 US states, most of them in the north-east, and Washington DC.
Such unions have been approved either through legislation, court rulings or voter referendums.
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The ruling by Judge Arenda Wright Allen in Norfolk followed a legal challenge on same-sex marriage by a gay couple.
The judge agreed with them that the ban infringes on their constitutional rights and their fundamental freedom to marry.
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