Lifestyle / gay marriage Calif. Gay Marriages Surge Past Mass. But upcoming vote may change the rules By Matt Cantor, Newser Staff Posted Oct 7, 2008 8:20 AM CDT Copied Proposition 8 supporter Rick Yorgason, right, asks voter Kevin Patel, left, about his thoughts on gay marriage during a poll of voters in Elk Grove, Calif., on Saturday, Aug. 23, 2008. (AP Photo/Steve Yeater) Gay marriage has been legal in California for just 3 months, and already some 11,000 same-sex couples have tied the knot—more than in Massachusetts in 4 years, a UCLA study found. But things may change next month when Californians vote on whether to amend the state constitution to define marriage as between a man and a woman, the Los Angeles Times reports. “People have waited for so long to be able to do this. I'm sure that is the reason for the big response,” said a rep for a Los Angeles gay and lesbian group. Meanwhile, new marriage forms let couples call themselves “bride” and “groom” if they choose; after gay marriage was legalized, “Party A” and “Party B” had been the only options. (More gay marriage stories.) Report an error