---
title: "What LGBT Americans think of same-sex marriage"
description: "Nearly all LGBT Americans support same-sex marriage, but enthusiasm for this new legal change now under review by the U.S. Supreme Court isn't as uniform as one might think. "
date: "2015-01-27"
authors:
  - name: "Jens Manuel Krogstad"
    job_title: "Former Senior Writer and Editor"
    link: "https://www.pewresearch.org/staff/jens-manuel-krogstad/"
url: "https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2015/01/27/what-lgbt-americans-think-of-same-sex-marriage/"
categories:
  - "Same-Sex Marriage"
  - "Same-Sex Marriage"
---

# What LGBT Americans think of same-sex marriage

Nearly all LGBT Americans support same-sex marriage, but enthusiasm for this new legal change [now under review](http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/courts_law/supreme-court-agrees-to-hear-gay-marriage-issue/2015/01/16/865149ec-9d96-11e4-a7ee-526210d665b4_story.html) by the U.S. Supreme Court isn't as uniform as one might think. While the rising level of support for same-sex marriage among the general public is well known and now [stands at 52%](https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2014/09/24/graphics-slideshow-changing-attitudes-on-gay-marriage/), less known are the views among the country's lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender adults.

Here are some key facts:

[![LGBT, Same-Sex Marriage](https://www.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2015/01/FT_15.01.23_LGBT-2.png)](https://assets.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2015/01/FT_15.01.23_LGBT-2.png)

**Just like the general public, support for same-sex marriage differs among LGBT adults along party lines. **Among LGBT adults who identify with or lean toward the Republican Party, support for gay marriage is not as strong as it is among Democrat LGBT adults, according to a 2013 [Pew Research Center survey](https://www.pewresearch.org/social-trends/2013/06/13/a-survey-of-lgbt-americans/). A strong majority of LGBT adults of both parties favored allowing gays and lesbians to marry legally, with 78% of those who lean Republican saying they "strongly favor" or "favor" same-sex marriage compared with 96% who said the same among Democrats.

**A substantial share of LGBT adults say the issue of gay marriage has taken too much attention from other issues important to LGBT people**. While 58% said same-sex marriage should be the top priority for LGBT people right now, 39% said the issue was taking too much focus away from other issues important to LGBT people. Again, there is a partisan split among LGBT adults: A smaller share of Republicans (38%) said same-sex marriage should be a top priority compared with 64% of Democrats.

**Among the unmarried, LGBT Americans are more likely than the general public to say they want to get married**, by 52% to 46%. Today, same-sex marriage is [legal in 36 states](https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2015/01/20/same-sex-marriage-state-by-state/) and the District of Columbia. (When we surveyed 1,197 LGBT adults in 2013, it was legal in 17 states and D.C.) Just a fraction of LGBT adults we surveyed were married (16%) — most of them bisexuals in opposite-sex relationships — compared with half of all U.S. adults.

**When you account for religion and age, there are differences in how *strongly* LGBT adults favor same-sex marriage.** Although a large majority of religious LGBT Americans said they strongly favor same-sex marriage, the share who said so is lower than among those without a religious affiliation. Among the religiously affiliated, 67% strongly favor same-sex marriage, compared with 82% of the religiously unaffiliated.

Young LGBT adults are more likely to "strongly favor” same-sex marriage than their older counterparts: 82% of those ages 18 to 29 said so, compared with 71% of those 30 or older. Despite these differences, overall support for same-sex marriage remains strong: Across all age groups and regardless of religious affiliation, at least nine-in-ten LGBT adults strongly favor or favor same-sex marriage.

**LGBT Americans are split on the best way to achieve equality**. About half (49%) said equality can be achieved while maintaining a distinct LGBT culture, while another 49% said it’s reached by becoming part of mainstream institutions like marriage.