President George W. Bush has failed in his attempt to amend the US Constitution to ban same-sex marriage after a divided US Senate blocked the measure.
On 48-to-50 vote, proponents yesterday fell 12 short of the needed 60 to clear a Democratic procedural hurdle and move to a vote on passage of the proposed constitutional amendment. Sixty-seven votes would be needed to approve the measure.
In a statement, Mr Bush said he was disappointed with the results but pledged to continue his fight against gay marriages.
"Activist judges and local officials in some parts of the country are not letting up in their efforts to redefine marriage for the rest of America - and neither should defenders of traditional marriage flag in their efforts," he said.
White House hopeful Mr John Kerry and fellow Senate Democrats accused Mr Bush and many of his fellow Republicans of pushing the proposal merely to rally their conservative base for the November presidential and congressional elections.
Democrats also charged that four days of Senate debate on it could have been better spent on such issues as health care, the economy, education or national security.
"The floor of the United States Senate should only be used for the common good, not issues designed to divide us for political purposes," Mr Kerry said.
Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch, a Utah Republican, said: "Nobody wants to discriminate against gays . . . gays have a right to live the way they want. But they should not have the right to change the definition of traditional marriage. That is where we draw the line."
Polls show most Americans oppose same-sex marriage, but are split on whether a constitutional ban is needed. Surveys also find voters believe many other issues are more important.
In February, Mr Bush called on the US Congress to approve an amendment after the highest court in Massachusetts ruled gay couples had a right to wed and San Francisco began issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples.
This helped trigger a number of lawsuits, some challenging the right of one state to refuse to recognise a same-sex marriage licensed in another.