Poll: Support for Same-Sex Marriage Growing

This post was reported by City News Service.

Nearly six in 10 California voters believe same-sex marriage should be legal, with support rising among older voters and in all regions of the state, according to a poll released Monday.

The USC Dornsife/Los Angeles Times poll reveals that attitudes in the state toward gay marriage have changed significantly since Californians banned it in 2008 by a vote of 52 percent to 48 percent. The Supreme Court will decide this month whether the ban will continue.

The poll found that 58 percent of the state's registered voters believe same-sex marriage should be legal, compared with 36 against, a margin of 22 points. When the same pollsters asked that question three years ago, 52 percent favored gay marriage and 40 percent opposed it, a 12-point spread, according to The Times.

Younger California voters also support gay marriage by larger margins than older voters, the poll found. While 76 percent of voters ages 18 to 29 support legalizing the unions, only 52 percent of those ages 50 to 64 agree.

Still, the shifts among older voters are dramatic, according to The Times. Voters 65 and older are now almost evenly divided -- 46 percent in favor, 47 percent against -- compared with just three years ago, when seniors opposed gay marriage by 19 percentage points.