A Gallup survey released Wednesday
reported its highest support yet for allowing gay and lesbian couples
to marry.
When pollsters asked 1,028 adults, “Do
you think marriages between same-sex couples should or should not be
recognized by the law as valid, with the same rights as traditional
marriages?” 55 percent answered that such unions should be valid.
Forty-two percent said they should not.
Gallup first recorded majority (53%)
support for marriage equality in 2011.
The
polling firm noted that while only 30 percent of Republicans
support same-sex marriage, they have nearly doubled their support for
it since 1996, the first year Gallup asked the question.
However, a Washington Post-ABC
News survey conducted in March found even higher support, with 59
percent of participants saying they support allowing gay couples to
marry.
(Related: New
poll records highest support for gay marriage yet.)