Congressman Marries Same-Sex Partner
U.S. Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney, D-New York, married his same-sex partner in a ceremony over the weekend, according to WCBS-TV 2 in New York.
Maloney, who took office in 2013, married his long-time partner Randy Florke in a ceremony at their church in the Hudson Valley, the station reported.
“The openly gay New York congressman wed his longtime partner, Randy Gene Florke, at the Church of St. Mary-in-the-Highlands in Cold Spring. Florke proposed in December after the youngest of their three children wrote to Santa wishing for her parents to be married. The 47-year-old Maloney represents the lower Hudson Valley region.”
The Advocate reports that the pair have been together for 22 years.
Maloney is the Empire State’s first openly gay member of Congress and only the second openly gay member of Congress to marry their partner. Former U.S. Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., was the first to do so in 2012.
For anyone wondering how Maloney’s Democratic colleagues in Congress may feel about his history-making marriage, one only needs to look back to Frank’s marriage, as reported by The Inquisitr.
“The ceremony was officiated by Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick and had some politics sprinkled in. The 72-year-old Frank, a Democratic Congressman from Massachusetts, vowed to love his partner James Ready ‘in sickness and in health, in Congress or in retirement, whether the surf is up or the surf’s flat, for richer or for poorer, under the Democrats or the Republicans, CNN reported. Frank has long been a champion of gay rights and has been openly gay since the late 1987, the first sitting member of Congress to come out.”
“The ceremony, held at the Boston Marriott Newton, drew many prominent politicians, including top-ranking Democratic Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi and Sen. John Kerry, Reuters reported. Left off the invite list was Pres. Obama–Frank said he didn’t want the Secret Service to have to essentially shut down the town so Obama and wife Michelle could attend.”
Local politicians in New York were quick to offer congratulations, including U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand and Gov. Andrew Cuomo, himself a long-time gay marriage advocate.
My best wishes to @RepSeanMaloney and @RandyFlorke on your wedding today in Cold Spring, NY. Congratulations!
— Andrew Cuomo (@NYGovCuomo) June 21, 2014
Reports indicate that Maloney will not take a honeymoon at this time as he plans to return to work on Monday while the House is still in session.
[Image via Representative Sean Patrick Maloney Facebook Page]
