Quinn Headed to Albany

A spokeswoman for Christine Quinn, the speaker of the New York City council, confirmed to Advocate.com that Quinn will head to Albany on Tuesday night to push for the marriage equality bill awaiting a vote in the state senate.

The travel by the lesbian speaker, an outspoken advocate for the marriage equality bill, adds to the increasingly strong signs that a vote on the bill is imminent.

The speaker is scheduled to appear with Melissa Russo on WNBC's New York Nonstop around 7:15 p.m., after which point she will travel to the state capital to lobby lawmakers, according to spokeswoman Eunic Ortiz.

During the interview, Russo asked Quinn about the prospects for the marriage equality bill to pass in the narrowly divided state senate, where Democrats hold a slim 32-30 majority.

Quinn said that she believed that the vote would be "close," although she was "optimistic" the bill would pass with bipartisan support. She said it was important to hold a vote regardless of the outcome, because the public has a "right to know" where legislators stand on the issue.

According to the Albany Times Union, a vote on the marriage equality bill is expected to follow passage of the $2.8 billion deficit reduction plan. The senate is scheduled to return to session tonight at 9, at which point it could pass the deficit plan, then begin debate on the marriage bill.

The state assembly passed the marriage equality bill in May, but it would need to pass that chamber again to meet a requirement that identical versions of the bill be passed in the same session. Daniel O'Donnell, the gay legislator who sponsored the bill in the lower house, told The New York Observer today that he is ready to make that happen.