---
title: "Majority of Public Favors Same-Sex Marriage, but Divisions Persist"
description: "A majority of Americans (61%) favor allowing gays and lesbians to marry legally, while about half as many (31%) oppose same-sex marriage. Republicans and Democrats remain deeply divided over legal marriage for gays and lesbians – though support has increased significantly in both parties over the past 15 years."
date: "2019-05-14"
authors:
  - name: "Sara Atske"
url: "https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2019/05/14/majority-of-public-favors-same-sex-marriage-but-divisions-persist/"
categories:
  - "Same-Sex Marriage"
  - "Same-Sex Marriage"
---

# Majority of Public Favors Same-Sex Marriage, but Divisions Persist

## Table of Contents
1. [Majority of Public Favors Same-Sex Marriage, but Divisions Persist](https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2019/05/14/majority-of-public-favors-same-sex-marriage-but-divisions-persist/markdown)
2. [Appendix: Charts](https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2019/05/14/attitudes-on-gay-marriage-2019-appendix-charts/markdown)

[![A graph showing public remains supportive of same-sex marriage; wide partisan gap persists](https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2019/05/PP_2019.05.14_same-sex-marriage_0-01.png)](https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2019/05/14/majority-of-public-favors-same-sex-marriage-but-divisions-persist/pp_2019-05-14_same-sex-marriage_0-01/)

After years of generally steady increases, opinions about same-sex marriage are mostly unchanged since 2017. Today, a majority of Americans (61%) favor allowing gays and lesbians to marry legally, while about half as many (31%) oppose same-sex marriage.

While attitudes about same-sex marriage are changed little from two years ago, support has increased substantially over the past two decades. In 2004, opinion was almost the reverse of what it is today: 60% opposed same-sex marriage, while just 31% were in favor.

The Pew Research Center survey, conducted March 20-25 among 1,503 adults finds that Republicans and Democrats remain deeply divided over legal marriage for gays and lesbians – though support has increased significantly in both parties over the past 15 years.

Today, three-quarters of Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents favor same-sex marriage, up from 43% 15 years ago. By contrast, fewer than half of Republicans and Republican leaners (44%) support same-sex marriage; in 2004, just 19% of Republicans supported it.

Support for same-sex marriage also has increased among nearly all demographic groups over the past 15 years, including [across generations](http://www.pewresearch.org/religion/fact-sheet/changing-attitudes-on-gay-marriage/#generations) and [by religious affiliation](http://www.pewresearch.org/religion/fact-sheet/changing-attitudes-on-gay-marriage/#religious-affiliation):

- Support for same-sex marriage is highest among Millennials (74%) – as has generally been the case for nearly a decade. A majority of Gen Xers (58%) support allowing gays and lesbians to marry legally, as do about half of Boomers (51%) and 45% of the Silent Generation.
- Among religious groups, majorities of Catholics (61%), white mainline Protestants (66%) and the religiously unaffiliated (79%) say they support same-sex marriage. By contrast, just 29% of white evangelical Protestants favor same-sex marriage, while about twice as many (63%) are opposed.

Continue exploring [attitudes about same-sex marriage](https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/fact-sheet/changing-attitudes-on-gay-marriage/).

[semantic_toggle_content_setup titles="Overall, Leaned party, Detailed party, Party and ideology" id="political-views" style="pills" pill_size="tiny"]

[semantic_toggle_content_tab id="political-views"]

[semantic_toggle_content_tab id="political-views"]

[semantic_toggle_content_tab id="political-views"]

[semantic_toggle_content_tab id="political-views"]

---

**Next:** [Appendix: Charts](https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2019/05/14/attitudes-on-gay-marriage-2019-appendix-charts.md)