A statewide survey released yesterday showed a first-ever majority of
people in California support same-sex marriage, a finding that pollsters
describe as a milestone driven by young people.
About 51 percent of registered voters in California favor the idea of
allowing gay and lesbian couples to wed, while 42 percent disapprove, according
to the private Field Poll survey service.
The result represents the highest level of support in more than three decades
of polling California voters on the sensitive issue of same-sex marriage laws.
"I would characterize it as a historic poll," said Field Poll Director Mark
DiCamillo.
He noted that a marked number of young voters -- more than two of every three
-- supported permitting same-sex marriage.
The random-sample survey went into circulation on May 17, just two days after
the California Supreme Court's landmark ruling that struck down the state's ban
on same-sex marriage.
The Field Poll survey result, however, was different from another statewide
survey released last week.
The Los Angeles Times/KTLA Poll found that 41 percent of respondents said
they approved of the high court's decision to allow same-sex marriage, and 52
percent said they disapproved.
