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GROWG SUPPORT FOR GAY MARRIAGE: CHANGED MDS AND CHANGG DEMOGRAPHICS
More pennts who lean toward the Democratic Party (81%) favor gay marriage than Democrats (71%). As recently as 2004, nearly twice as many Amerins opposed than favored allowg gay and lbian people to marry legally; by 2019, public opn had reversed, wh 61% favor and 31% opposed. A new natnal survey fds that much of the shift is attributable to the arrival of a large hort of young adults – the Millennial generatn – who are far more open to gay rights than prev generatns.
Equally important, however, is that 14% of all Amerins – and 28% of gay marriage supporters – say they have changed their mds on this issue favor of gay marriage. Pollg nducted 2003 found most Amerins (58%) opposed to allowg gays and lbians to marry legally, and jt a third (33%) favor. Roughly a third (32%) say is bee they know someone – a iend, fay member or other acquatance – who is homosexual.
About one--five (18%) say they changed their mds to support gay marriage bee the world has changed and that this kd of shift is evable. Opns about homosexualy and the possible impact same-sex marriage also have shifted substantially over the past . In 2003, as the bate over same-sex marriage tensified and Massachetts beme the first state to allow same-sex marriage, a 56% majory of Amerins felt that allowg gays and lbians to marry would unrme the tradnal Amerin fay, while 39% disagreed.