Poll: Majority of New Yorkers support marriage equality

by Hannah Clay Wareham

Bay Windows

Thursday January 27, 2011

A Quinnipiac University poll released Thursday, Jan. 27 revealed that the majority of New York residents support legal recognition of same-sex marriage.

56 percent of those surveyed indicate that they support marriage equality; 37 percent do not.

Poll spokesman Maurice Carroll said that this is the highest level of support for the issue ever recorded by Quinnipiac.

"Gov. Andrew Cuomo didn't make a big issue of same-sex marriage in his state-of-the-state speech, but he said he was for it and so are most New Yorkers," Carroll said. "New York State voter attitudes about gay marriage have shifted dramatically since April 15, 2004, when Quinnipiac University first asked about gay marriage and found voters opposed the measure 55 - 37 percent."

Empire State Pride Agenda, an LGBT advocacy organization serving New York State, released a statement in response to the poll results: "Polls consistently show that allowing same-sex couples to legally marry has majority support in New York State. We look forward to the governor and the legislature working together to carry out the will of the people and pass this legislation, so loving same-sex couples in New York can finally protect each other and their children just like any other family."

Read more here.

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