Millions of people in Cuba have voted to approve legalise same-sex marriage and adoption for gay couples in a national referendum.
About two-thirds of the population voted on Sunday to approve the reforms within a sweeping new proposed Family Code.
The legislation, when passed, will also allow surrogate pregnancies and give gay couples the right to adopt children.
Cuba’s government had backed the law change and ran a nationwide campaign urging people to approve it.
With around 67 per cent of votes counted, the country’s electoral officials announced the “yes” campaign had been successful by a vote of 66.9% to 33.1%.
Cuba government says ‘today we are a better country’
LGBTIQ+ activists in the country celebrated the same-sex marriage and adoption result after advocating for the reforms for years.
Conservative evangelicals and other religious groups publicly opposed the new laws.
But after the vote Cuba’s President Miguel Diaz-Canel tweeted, “Yes has won. Justice has been done.”
Cuban minister of foreign affairs Bruno Rodríguez also welcomed approval of the legislation, saying the country is now a “better” place” with “more rights”.
“Cuba has a new family code,” Rodríguez tweeted.
“Yes was the majority vote. Our people opted for a revolutionary, uplifting law that drives us to achieve social justice for which we work every day.
“Today we are a better country, with more rights.”
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Well Done Cuba! ✔️✔️✔️✔️