A recent study from the Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI) indicates that backing for same-sex marriage has decreased coming from a peak in 2022.
For the very first time since PRRI began monitoring nationwide support for three crucial LGBTQ+ rights policies — equal treatment protections, religiously-based service refusals, and same-sex marriage — the organization discovered a fall in endorsement for LGBTQ+ rights across all three areas.
In 2023, two-thirds of Americans (67%) expressed support for same-sex marriage, down from 69% in 2022. In 2014, as the case giving same-sex marriage nationwide recognition advanced to the U.S. Supreme Court, 54% of Americans favored same-sex marriage.
While the survey disclosed that older Americans have less inclination to support same-sex marriage in comparison to younger individuals, the backing among Gen Z and millennials has decreased from a high of 79% in 2018 to 71% today.
Nationally, the majority in all 50 states supports same-sex marriage, ranging from a high of 83% in Washington State and Massachusetts to a slim majority of 51% in Arkansas.
Most followers of various religious beliefs prefer same-sex marriage, but the support for same-sex marriage has dropped among certain religious groups, such as Hispanic Catholics (75% in 2022 to 68% in 2023).
A part of the decrease in support for same-sex marriage and other LGBTQ+ rights can be observed in connection to favorable perceptions of Christian nationalism in the United States.
The Christian nationalism scale developed by PRRI categorizes Americans into four groups based on their perspectives regarding the connection between Christianity, American identity, and the U.S. government. Among supporters of Christian nationalism, only 22% back same-sex marriage, compared to 93% of those who do not support Christian nationalism.
Individuals who do not support Christian nationalism almost all (93%) support laws that safeguard LGBTQ+ individuals from discrimination in housing, employment, and accommodation, while among adherents, a majority (52%) oppose such anti-discrimination laws.
The survey supported other data indicating a rise in LGBTQ+ identity among Americans. By 2023, one out of ten Americans identify as part of the LGBTQ+ community, including over one in five Americans (22%) aged 18-29.
Over seven out of ten LGBTQ+ Americans are part of the two youngest generational categories. Twenty-four percent of Gen Z adults and 15% of millennials identify as LGBTQ+. The majority of LGBTQ+ Americans are affiliated with the Democratic party (46%) and almost sixty percent consider themselves liberal (58%).
A majority of LGBTQ+ Americans do not have a religious affiliation (52%), a figure nearly double the rate of overall non-religious Americans (27%).
By state, the proportion of residents identifying as LGBTQ+ varies from a low of 4% in Alabama and South Carolina to a high of 16% in New Mexico. In conservative states, exclusively, the proportion of the population under 30 identifying as LGBTQ+ rose by over ten points, from 9% in 2016 to 20% in 2023.
