Gay Marriage Public Support at an ALL Time HIGH
Support for gay marriage has risen to an all-time high in the latest Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll, reinforcing it as one of the fastest-moving changes in social attitudes of this generation.
The new survey found that 59% of Americans support allowing same-sex marriage, nearly double the 30% support reported in 2004.
Fred Yang, the Democratic pollster who conducted the survey with Republican Bill McInturff said public opinion about gay marriage is changing at a much more rapid rate than did the nation’s attitudes toward interracial marriage, which now is supported by 87% of Americans.
Support has grown markedly for gay marriage among Hispanics, women and people who lack college degrees, among other demographic groups. Opposition among conservatives has lessened: Some 35% of conservatives supported gay marriage in March, up from 26% in April, 2013.
Among Republicans, 40% support gay marriage, up from to 27% two years ago.
Support for gay marriage continued to run highest — at 74% –among Democrats and people ages 18-34.
The findings help explain why same-sex marriage is receding in prominence as a political issue, even among Republicans. Some likely Republican presidential candidates have tried to defuse or sidestep the issue by, for example, deferring to states to set marriage policy.
However, the issue still poses some risk to GOP candidates facing a spirited presidential primary. Among core Republican voters — the party’s most committed followers — opposition is far stronger, with only 29% saying they support gay marriage.
When Republican primary voters were asked in the new survey how their view of candidates would be affected by support for gay marriage, 50% said it would make them less favorable to candidates, 19% said it would make them more favorable.
The survey of 1,000 adults was conducted March 1-5. It has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points. Margins of error for subgroups are larger.
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