I am hurrying to be the first here to congratulate former Congressman Gerry Studds on the revelation of his marriage in Massachusetts to his longtime companion Dean Hara.
Gay Former Congressman Marries in Mass.
The Associated Press
Sunday, May 15, 2005; 11:35 AM
BOSTON -- Former U.S. Rep. Gerry Studds, the first openly gay member of Congress, quietly married his longtime partner last year after same-sex marriage became legal in Massachusetts, according to a published report.
Studds, a liberal Democrat who spent more than 20 years in Congress, married Dean Hara in Boston on May 24, the Patriot Ledger of Quincy reported Sunday.
Studds, 68, and Hara, 47, declined to comment for the Ledger's story.
First elected to Congress in 1973, Studds built a loyal constituency that returned him to Washington with an average of nearly 70 percent of the vote over 12 elections.
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