June 07, 2006

Abstract: (Angus Reid Global Scan) - Many Americans believe each state should be allowed to establish the definition of marriage, according to a poll by Gallup published in USA Today. 51 per cent of respondents favour state laws, while 42 per cent support amending the U.S. Constitution to ban same-sex marriage.

(Angus Reid Global Scan) - Many Americans believe each state should be allowed to establish the definition of marriage, according to a poll by Gallup published in USA Today. 51 per cent of respondents favour state laws, while 42 per cent support amending the U.S. Constitution to ban same-sex marriage.

In 2004, marriage certificates were issued to same-sex couples by local governments in the states of California, Oregon, New Mexico and New York. In May 2004, 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.

On Jun. 5, the U.S. Senate began debating the Federal Marriage Amendment, which seeks to constitutionally define marriage as being between a man and a woman in the entire country. 58 per cent of respondents believe it should be illegal for homosexual couples to get married, while 36 per cent see no problem with the unions.

United States president George W. Bush voiced support for a constitutional amendment, calling it "the most democratic process by which our country can resolve this issue. In their wisdom, our founders set a high bar for amending the Constitution. An amendment must be approved by two-thirds of the House and the Senate, and then ratified by three-fourths of the 50 state legislatures. This process guarantees that every state legislature and every community in our nation will have a voice and a say in deciding this issue."

In July 2004, the upper house voted 50 to 48 to end deliberations on the issue of a federal constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage. Over the past two years, 19 American states have enacted amendments to define marriage as the union between a man and a woman. Seven more will hold votes on the matter this year.

Polling Data

Would you support amending the U.S. Constitution to make it against the law for homosexual couples to get married anywhere in the U.S., or should each state make its own laws on homosexual marriage?

	Jun. 2006	Apr. 2005	Aug. 2004
Support amendment	42%	39%	44%
State laws	51%	56%	51%
No opinion	7%	5%	5%

Do you think it should be legal or illegal for homosexual couples to get married?

	Jun. 2006	Aug. 2005	Aug. 2004
Legal	36%	39%	32%
Illegal	58%	58%	62%
No opinion	5%	3%	5%

Source: TNS / ABC News
Methodology: Telephone interviews with 1,001 American adults, conducted from May 31 to Jun. 4, 2006. Margin of error is 3 per cent.

Complete Poll (PDF)

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