Currently, 26 senators, all Democrats, publicly support the marriage equality bill, which needs 32 votes to pass the Republican-controlled Senate. Gov. Andrew Cuomo and New Yorkers United for Marriage, the bipartisan coalition working to pass the bill, maintain that they want to see a vote only on a measure guaranteed to pass.

As of late Monday, no bill had been introduced in the Senate, where the end of the legislative session, scheduled for June 20, is rapidly approaching. Only seven working days remain for lawmakers, but the dwindling calendar did not seem to worry Mehlman.

"Based on meeting with a lot of different folks today, I feel cautiously optimistic about where we stand," he said.