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Slim Majority of Americans Support Same-sex Marriage
05.19.2011
Topics: LGBTQ

Most Americans Support Same-sex Marriage; Religious Divisions Persist

A majority (56%) of Americans favor allowing gay and lesbian couples to adopt children, compared to 36% who are opposed.

There is significant difference in support for same-sex marriage across religious and political affiliation groups. A solid majority of Catholics and white mainline Protestants (56% and 55% respectively) favor allowing gay and lesbian couples to legally marry, compared to only 23% of white evangelical Protestants. Nearly 8-in-10 (77%) Americans who are not affiliated with any religion support same-sex marriage.

More than 6-in-10 (61%) Democrats and a majority (55%) of political independents support allowing gay and lesbian couples to legally marry.  In contrast, less than 4-in-10 (37%) Republicans and only 34% of Americans who identify with the Tea Party movement support same-sex marriage.

There are now as many Americans who strongly support same-sex marriage as strongly oppose it. One-in-four (24%) Americans report that they strongly favor allowing gay and lesbian couples to legally marry, equal to the number who strongly oppose it (25%).

The Washington Post/ABC News poll also found this parity among strong supporters and strong opponents.


Recommended citation:

Jones, Robert P., and Daniel Cox. “Slim Majority of Americans Support Same-sex Marriage.” PRRI. 2011. http://www.prri.org/research/majority-of-americans-say-they-support-same-sex-marriage-adoption-by-gay-and-lesbian-couples/.