A majority of Iowans oppose passage of
a state constitutional amendment which would ban gay marriage in
Iowa, the Des
Moines Register reported.
Fifty-six percent of the 800 adults
interviewed by the paper said they do not favor such a measure, while
38 percent said they do. Opposition increased 2 percentage points
since last year's survey.
The poll, which has a margin of error
of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points, was conducted between
February 12 and 15.
Republicans favor the ban by 54
percent, and independents by 35 percent. Only 15 percent of
Democrats said they would vote for the measure.
The Iowa Supreme Court legalized gay
marriage in 2009, angering social conservatives who have called for a
public vote on the issue.
The proposed amendment easily cleared
the Republican-controlled Iowa House last year but Senate Majority
Leader Mike Gronstal blocked the measure from reaching the Senate
floor.
“People's rights should not be put to
a popular vote,” Gronstal said. “We didn't put slavery to a vote
of the people in Iowa. We didn't put the right to go to a school in
your neighborhood to a vote of the people, and we didn't put the
public accommodations law to a vote of the people in Iowa.”
A large percentage of those interviewed
(33%) said they didn't care much either way.