A poll released Wednesday found an
increasing majority of voters in California support gay marriage, and
opposition to the institution has plummeted.
The Field Poll shows support for gay
nuptials has grown dramatically over the three and a half years since
voters approved Proposition 8, California's gay marriage ban.
According to the poll, 59 percent of
respondents favor giving gay couples the right to marry, while 34
percent disagree.
Opposition has plummeted 8 percentage
points since 2008, and 16 points since 2003.
“This is now showing that opinions
are changing irrespective of generational replacement,” Mark
DiCamillo, who directs the poll, told the Sacramento
Bee. “This is real change.”
A lower federal court's ruling
declaring Proposition 8 unconstitutional was upheld earlier this
month by a 3-judge panel. Opponents have appealed the ruling.
DiCamillo credited the increasing
number of states legalizing such unions – Maryland and Washington
being the latest – and California's ongoing litigation with
contributing to the opinion shift. (Maryland Governor Martin
O'Malley is expected to sign a gay marriage bill approved by
lawmakers into law on Thursday.)
“The winds of change are blowing in
other states [and] when judges start ruling the same way, I believe
that has an influence,” he said.