WASHINGTON (BP)--The District of Columbia Council voted 11-2 to legalize "same-sex marriage" Dec. 1, putting the capital in position to become the sixth U.S. jurisdiction to approve such unions.

The action is the first of two votes required to pass the legislation. A second vote by the council is expected to occur Dec. 15. D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty has committed to sign the measure after a second favorable council vote.

Congress will have the opportunity to review the bill after it becomes law, but it appears unlikely legislators will overturn the D.C. action.

Five states -- Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont and Iowa -- recognize "gay marriage." In none of those states, however, have voters approved "same-sex marriage" in a ballot initiative. All 31 states that have held ballot initiatives on the question of "same-sex marriage" have approved the traditional view of the institution.

D.C. residents have been blocked from voting on a proposal to prohibit "gay marriage." The D.C. Board of Elections and Ethics ruled Nov. 17 against an initiative that would define marriage as only "between a man and a woman," saying it could not go forward because it "would authorize discrimination prohibited" under the city's Human Rights Act.

The Alliance Defense Fund has filed a lawsuit on behalf of eight D.C. citizens calling for approval of an effort to place the initiative on the ballot.

Council member David Catania, the openly homosexual sponsor of the bill, said in a written statement after its passage, "Today's vote is an important victory not only for the gay and lesbian community but for everyone who supports equal rights. Gays and lesbians bear every burden of citizenship and are entitled to every benefit and protection that the law allows."

The only two D.C. council members to vote against the "gay marriage" bill were Marion Barry and Yvette Alexander, both Democrats.

Barry, the former D.C. mayor, said before his vote, according to The Washington Post, "I stand here today to express in no uncertain terms my strong commitment to the gay and lesbian, bisexual, transgender community on almost every issue except this one."

The bill's opponents, including the Southern Baptist Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, say the legislation will harm the institution of marriage, as well as families and society. They also contend the measure does not appear to provide enough protection for the expression of religious belief by those who oppose "gay marriage."