Republicans' support for same-sex marriage drops ahead of 10th anniversary of Obergefell: poll

By Ryan Foley, Christian Post Reporter Tuesday, June 03, 2025

Republicans' support for same-sex marriage has dropped as the 10th anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court decision that legalized same-sex marriage nationwide approaches. 

Gallup released a survey of 1,003 American adults conducted between May 1-18 last week, documenting views about same-sex marriage and same-sex relationships in general. The poll, which had a margin of error of +/-4 percentage points, comes ahead of the 10th anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2015 Obergefell v. Hodgesdecision, which legalized same-sex marriage nationwide. Gallup has consistently measured public opinion about same-sex marriage for more than two decades. 

Overall, most Americans (68%) said they believe same-sex marriages should be recognized as valid. This constitutes a slight drop from the record high of 71% measured in 2022 and 2023. 

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Broken down by political parties, the results of the survey reveal a widening gap. Support for same-sex marriage among Democrats reached a record high of 88% this year. By contrast, approval of same-sex marriage among Republicans was measured at just 41%. This year marked the third-consecutive year where support for same-sex marriage dropped among Republicans after reaching a record high of 55% in both 2021 and 2022. 

Among independents who do not identify with either party, 76% supported same-sex marriage. This marks an increase from the amount of support for same-sex marriage measured by independents last year (74%) while still falling short of the record high of 77% recorded in 2023. 

When asked about their views on same-sex relationships, the view that such relations were morally acceptable reached a record high of 86% among Democrats this year. Majorities of both independents (69%) and Americans as a whole (64%) believed that same-sex relationships were morally acceptable in 2025, down from respective record highs of 74% and 71%. 

Among Republicans, 38% viewed same-sex relations as morally acceptable, marking a third-consecutive year of decline following a record high percentage (56%) indicating they saw same-sex relations as morally acceptable in 2022. 

Besides Republicans, only among one other group did support for same-sex marriage and the view that same-sex relationships were morally acceptable fail to achieve majority support: weekly churchgoers. Just 33% of those who go to religious services every week expressed support for same-sex marriage, while only 24% believed that homosexual relations are morally acceptable. 

Support for same-sex marriage was highest among those who never or seldom go to church (81%), those between the ages of 18 and 34 (79%), college graduates (74%) and women (73%). Large majorities of adults between the ages of 35 and 54 (69%), those who go to church nearly every week or monthly (67%), non-college graduates (65%), men (62%) and those 55 and older (60%) also expressed support for same-sex marriage. 

Similarly, the view that same-sex relations were morally acceptable was most prevalent among those who never or seldom go to church (81%), followed by those between the ages of 18 and 34 (76%), college graduates (71%), women (68%), those between the ages of 35 and 54 (63%), non-college graduates (60%), men (58%), those 55 and older (57%) and those who go to church nearly every week or monthly (56%).