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(Angus Reid Global Scan) - Many adults in the Sunshine State believe the concept of wedlock should only comprise heterosexual partners, according to a poll by Strategic Vision. 58 per cent of respondents in Florida favour a state constitutional ban on same-sex marriages.

During the January 2004 State of the Union address, United States president George W. Bush said, "Activist judges (...) have begun redefining marriage by court order, without regard for the will of the people and their elected representatives."

In 2004, marriage certificates were issued to same-sex couples by local governments in the states of California, Oregon, New Mexico and New York. Last May, the state of Massachusetts allowed gay and lesbian partners to apply for marriage licenses, the first state-sanctioned homosexual weddings in the U.S.

Civil unions—currently available in the states of Vermont and Connecticut—give same-sex partners the same legal rights of married couples such as inheritance, insurance and hospital visiting privileges. A California law grants domestic partners the same legal rights of married couples, with the exception of filing joint income tax returns.

Last November, voters in 11 American states enacted amendments to define marriage as the union between a man and a woman.

In January, groups advocating for the legalization of same-sex marriage in the Sunshine State announced they would abandon all legal challenges. Last year, eight lawsuits were filed in Florida, challenging the constitutionality of the federal Defense of Marriage Act and urging for the recognition of same-sex marriages performed in Massachusetts and Canada.

Polling Data

Would you favour a state constitutional ban on same-sex marriages?

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