Mayor to Ill. gay couples: Come marry in Minn.

Associated Press

CHICAGO

With all of Illinois’ financial woes, residents have grown accustomed to politicians from other states trying to raid its companies, jobs and best workers.

Now one of them is making a similar pitch to the state’s gay couples: Come north to get married, and spend lots of money.

Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak, who recently married 46 same-sex couples after his state’s passage of a law legalizing gay weddings, will appear in a predominantly gay Chicago neighborhood today to launch a campaign called “Marry Me in Minneapolis.” He plans to follow with campaigns in Colorado and Wisconsin, two other states that haven’t approved same-sex marriage.

Rybak is trying to persuade Chicagoans that rather than take a long — and expensive — plane trip to one of the coasts, just drive six hours to his city. Recently, many gay couples in the Midwest have said their vows in Iowa — the only state directly bordering Illinois that allows same-sex weddings.

He’s trying to capitalize on disappointment among Illinois gay couples that the state, dominated by Democrats, still hasn’t approved a marriage law and likely won’t anytime soon with lawmakers on recess.

Rybak figures the campaign, if successful, could be extremely lucrative for Minneapolis.