New U.S. Census Bureau figures show the number of Illinois households run by same-sex couples has jumped nearly 42 percent in the last decade.
That's from 22,887 in 2000 to 32,469 last year.
The trend in Illinois mirrors those nationwide and that of . Experts and advocates say social attitudes toward same-sex couples are changing.
Also, over the last decade Illinois has passed several laws for gay rights. Most recently, the state approved same-sex civil unions, which give gay couples many of the same rights as married couples.
The census data released late Wednesday shows a 53 percent jump in female couples since 2000.
In 2000, most of the couples were male - 12,155 compared with 10,732 female couples. But last year there were 16,416 female couples compared with 16,053 male couples.
