A majority of Americans, 63 percent, say same-sex marriage should be legal, a new
Gallup Poll finds. It’s the first time a majority has endorsed gay marriage since Gallup began tracking the issue back in 2004.
“This year marks a significant uptick in support for legalizing same-sex marriage, exceeding the symbolic 50 percent mark for the first time in Gallup's history,” wrote Gallup’s Frank Newport.
There’s a catch, though. While the poll found support for gay marriage had risen considerably among Democrats and independent voters over the past year alone, there was no change among Republicans.
In 2010, 56 percent of Democrats and 49 percent of independents supported legalizing gay marriage.
This year, it was 69 percent of Democrats and 59 independents.
However, the level of support among Republicans remained the same in both years at 28 percent.
Younger Americans are also more likely to accept same-sex marriage. The poll found 70 percent support of legalizing gay marriage among those aged 18 to 34, up from 54 percent last year.
There was 39 percent support among those 55 and older, compared to 33 percent in that age group last year.
Older men were the least likely to back gay marriage.
The poll of 1,018 adults was conducted May 5-8.
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