Opposition to gay marriage in states is going down
The Seattle Times reports on a poll conducted for the religious conservative group Faith and Freedom Network that shows that less than 50 percent of state voters oppose gay marriage.
The telephone survey of 408 registered voters, conducted for Faith and Freedom by Elway Research, asked respondents: “Do you support legalizing homosexual marriage in Washington state?” — language gay-rights groups call jarring enough to turn some people off.
Pollster Stuart Elway said the word “homosexual” was the group’s choice — not his. The results showed 48 percent of respondents answered “no” to the question, and 44 percent answered “yes.”
Last month a poll conducted by Seattle political consulting firm Strategies 360 found support for gay marriage marriage in Washington state at at 54-35.
In 2007 the Washington Legislature passed a domestic partnership law, which provided inheritance rights in cases where there was no will, hospital visitation rights, the ability to authorize autopsies and organ donations. In 2009, lawmakers passed an “everything but marriage” bill, greatly expanding the rights of same-sex couples to include things like workers’ compensation coverage, the right to use sick leave to care for a spouse, victims’ rights, including the right to receive notifications and benefits allowances.
Some lawmakers say they’ll consider introducing a bill making gay marriage legal in the next, regular legislative session.
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