A plurality of Utahns support gay
marriage, according to a poll released Monday.
The poll, conducted last week by
Benenson Strategy Group and commissioned by Freedom to Marry, asked
500 adults whether gay and lesbian couples should be allowed to marry
in Utah. Forty-nine percent of respondents said they should be
allowed, while 48 percent said they remain opposed.
Majorities of Democrats (79%) and
independents (51%) support marriage equality, as do 29 percent of
Republicans.
Sixty-nine percent of respondents said
same-sex marriage would not affect their families.
Ninety-four percent of married
respondents said allowing gay couples to marry would affect their own
marriages not much or not all, while 5 percent said it would a great
deal or somewhat.
A large majority (67%) of respondents
also want the Supreme Court to decide the issue and 66 percent
believe the court will strike down state marriage bans.
“This poll shows that the people of
Utah, like Americans all across the country, already support or are
ready to live with the freedom to marry,” Evan Wolfson, president
of Freedom to Marry, said in a statement announcing the findings.
“Utahns, like Americans generally, believe the Supreme Court should
act now and will rule in favor. Indeed, when the freedom to marry
has come to states like Utah, there has been little or no real
opposition or concern – even those who are less than keen know it’s
coming and doesn’t affect their lives, their families, their
marriages, or their community. The ‘dog that didn’t bark’ is
further proof that America is ready for the freedom to marry and that
it’s time for the Court to bring the country to national
resolution.”
Joel Benenson, founder and CEO of
Benenson Strategy Group, added: “When the freedom to marry is
supported by a plurality in Utah, one of our most conservative
states, it demonstrates that there is an irreversible trend taking
place and that this trend is accelerating at a pace not previously
seen on any issue.”
Supreme Court justices on Monday will
meet behind closed doors to consider petitions from cases challenging
bans in five states, including Utah, Wisconsin, Indiana, Virginia and
Oklahoma.