New polling data suggests more than 60% of voters in battleground states said they believe that same-sex marriages should be shielded by federal legislation.
The Human Rights Campaign, a national LGBTQ+ rights group, conducted the recent survey in 11 bellwether states — Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Michigan, North Carolina, New Hampshire, Nevada, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin — and determined that 64% of respondents would support a law "protecting the national right to same-sex marriage."
The survey tracked the opinions of 1,007 registered voters and covered the five-day period of July 28-Aug. 1.
HRC's findings run similar to other national polls regarding marriage equality.
A recent Gallup Poll had 71% of American respondents supporting the legal validity of same-sex marriage — an all-time high for that particular survey.
Also, a Morning Consult poll had nearly 60% of survey takers being comfortable with shielding same-sex marriage with federal legislation.
Back in July, a bipartisan group of House lawmakers passed the Respect for Marriage Act, which would require all states to legally recognize same-sex and interracial unions.
By proxy, it would also repeal the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA).
The 50-50 Senate will reportedly put the Respect for Marriage Act bill up to a vote soon, perhaps later this month.
Among the battleground states surveyed by HRC, Colorado leads the pack with 77% of respondents speaking favorably of same-sex marriage. Democrat Jared Polis serves as the union's first openly gay governor.
HRC reports 69% of women, 58% of men, and 55% of Christians voiced their support for same-sex marriage garnering federal protection.
"Marriage equality has been nothing but positive, both for the LGBTQ+ community and for our society as a whole — and that's reflected in this polling," said Joni Madison, HRC's interim president, in a Wednesday statement.
Same-sex marriage has been legal in the United States since 2015, when the Supreme Court ruled in Obergefell v. Hodges the right to marry is guaranteed to same-sex couples, per the U.S. Constitution.
On the flip side, 35 states already have statutes or constitutional amendments prohibiting same-sex marriage on the books.
"The joy that has emanated from thousands of weddings of couples who were previously denied the right to marry has melted many hearts," says Madison. "And the supposed harms that opponents of marriage equality predicted simply have not come to pass."
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