* From the Illinois Unites for Marriage website…

Big momentum from Springfield this week — and not just from the thousands of marriage supporters who marched on the Capitol!

Rep. Deb Conroy (D-Villa Park) announced that she will now cosponsor the marriage bill! She adds her name to the growing number of Illinois representatives who are standing on the right side of history and committing to passing this crucial legislation this year.

In announcing her support of SB10, Rep. Conroy said Illinois families can’t wait any longer for the freedom to marry:

“This is the right thing to do. We have waited too long. I think it’s the civil rights issue of our time and we need to move past this.”

Conroy had already been listed as one of the 34 solid supporters of the bill by the Windy City Times. And despite the fact that she represents DuPage County in the House, she defeated a Republican opponent with 58 percent of the vote last year.

Even so, it’s time that more “ducklings” start stepping forward here.

…Adding… From the Windy City Times…

Dist. 60, Rita Mayfield ( D ): Mayfield’s stance has frustrated LGBT organizers and sponsors of the bill, but she remains a target. She said she wants to vote “yes,” on the bill but will not. She says that her district does not support the measure and that she will vote “present” so as not to betray the will of her constituents.

Rep. Mayfield is listed on the paper’s “target list” - those who may yet be persuaded to vote for the bill. But that’s not what she told an opponent from Lake County this week…

In meeting Representative Rita Mayfield in the tunnel from the Capitol Building to the cafeteria, she informed Bonnie Quirke that she would be voting “no,” as this is how her constituents want her to vote in Waukegan, IL.

…Adding more… I’m getting some pushback from the pro gay marriage forces who contend that Rep. Mayfield has never been considered a possible “Yes” vote. From what I’ve heard, she’s been all over the place, but they’re right that in the past four or five months she’s leaned mainly toward a “Present” vote, which is really just a polite “No.”