Oregon Public Broadcasting

News that the California Supreme Court has upheld a ban on gay marriage has saddened many same-sex couples in the Northwest. Some of them were recently married in the Golden State. Correspondent Anna King reports.

Susan Poltl’s marriage still stands along with about 18,000 others. But now, no other gay couples can marry in California because the state’s highest court has upheld Proposition 8.

Poltl lives in Bellingham, Washington with her spouse. The two women traveled to California to get married last August.

Even though that marriage is preserved under the ruling, Poltl is disappointed California won’t allow more gay people to marry. But she thinks the fight isn’t over yet.

Susan Poltl: “It’s probably not unlike a lot of civil rights issues in the past that have moved forward, moved back, moved forward. I think the more it’s discussed the more people learn. And also the more people that begin coming out.”

Poltl calls herself a "late bloomer." She’s 62 now and came out just five years ago.

All three Northwest states ban gay marriage. But Washington and Oregon, offer domestic partnerships to same-sex couples.