A poll released Wednesday shows that only half of Americans are ready for an openly gay president.

The POLITICO/Morning Consult poll of 1,997 registered voters found 50 percent of respondents either “definitely” or “probably” ready for an openly gay president, while 37 percent said they were either “definitely” or “probably” not ready.

When asked whether the nation was ready for an openly gay president, 40 percent said yes, while 45 percent said no.

The question is relevant to the Democratic presidential campaign of Pete Buttigieg, the openly gay mayor of South Bend, Indiana. Buttigieg is the nation's first gay and married presidential candidate.

Buttigieg has previously said that the United States is ready for a gay president.

Buttigieg's sexuality “may be an issue for some voters as he remains in contention for the 2020 Democratic nomination,” said Tyler Sinclair, Morning Consult's vice president. “Notably, 58 percent of Republicans, 32 percent of independents, and 22 percent of Democrats say they aren't ready for a gay or lesbian president. The comparative figures not ready for a female president are 36 percent of Republicans, 15 percent of independents, and 8 percent of Democrats.”

The news comes after a McClatchy focus group found that Black voters were less likely to support Buttigieg's campaign in part because of his sexuality.