Maryland leans toward historic embrace of same-sex marriage in vote next month
Maryland voters are leaning toward legalizing same-sex marriage next month,
something that has never happened at the ballot box anywhere in the nation, a
new Washington Post poll finds.
A ballot question on whether to uphold a state law allowing gay nuptials is
favored 52 percent to 43 percent among likely voters, according to the poll,
reflecting a long-term trend toward greater acceptance of gay unions that has
included President Obama’s backing this year.
Read the full Washington Post poll results.
Same-sex marriage has become legal in six states and the District through
legislative or court action. But it has never been authorized by a popular vote.
Voters in Maine and Washington state will also be presented with the issue
Nov. 6 — the first time since 2009 that any state has been asked whether to
legalize same-sex marriage.
Although the measures are leading in polls in all three states, the election
results are hardly a given. Historically, opposition to same-sex marriage at the
ballot box has been stronger than polls suggested, and an expected ad blitz from
opponents in Maryland has barely begun.
On Question 6 in Maryland, voters will decide whether to uphold a law championed by Gov. Martin O’Malley (D) that won narrow
legislative approval this year and was swiftly petitioned to referendum by
opponents.
The Post poll finds sharp differences in support for Question 6 by race,
region, age and political party.
Both sides in Maryland have been heavily targeting African American voters in
a state where blacks make up a larger percentage of the electorate than anywhere
outside the Deep South.
Proponents have featured ministers and civil rights leaders in their ads.
Opponents have networked for months through black churches.
In The Post poll, white voters break in favor of gay nuptials, 56 percent to
39 percent.
But African Americans — who had become more supportive in national polls this
year — tilt against the measure. In the new survey, 42 percent of black voters
support the measure, and 53 percent oppose it.
Among Democrats, the racial divide is even more stark. While 76 percent of
white Democrats back Question 6, support is 40 percent among black Democrats.
Republicans in the state oppose the measure by 2 to 1, while independents
support it 2 to 1.
Across the state, support is highest in Montgomery County, where
65 percent of likely voters back the measure and 31 percent oppose
it.
Poll results flip in Prince George’s County, where 43 percent are in
favor and 54 percent are opposed to it. Voters in Baltimore City and
Baltimore County tilt in favor, as do those in Anne Arundel and Howard counties.
Those in the more rural rest of the state are evenly split on the question.
Leprenia Lindsay, 43, is among the minority in Prince George’s County.
“I think given the day and time we live in, and the progression of how
society has changed, I would support same-sex marriage,” said Lindsay, an
African American who lives in Temple Hills. “If someone is your life partner,
that person should be able to assist in making life-and-death decisions; it
shouldn’t be up to some family member you haven’t seen in 20 years.”
Lindsay said her views began to evolve on the topic in the late 1990s when
she returned to the Washington area shortly after college and took an
entry-level job at Banana Republic. At an employee orientation she began reading
about domestic partnership benefits.
“I thought, ‘Oh my God, times are changing,’ ” she recalled
Wednesday.
Lindsay said that even as she has come to accept gay marriage, her
15-year-old son has developed an opposition to it. “He is very accepting of
people with alternative lifestyles, but doesn’t believe they should be able to
get married,” she said.
That’s a view common to a generation of older churchgoers in Maryland, the
poll found.
“The Bible says there’s only one marriage, the covenant between a man and a
woman,” said Melissa Smith, a retired elementary school principal who lives in
Laurel. “They should have their beneficiaries; their families shouldn’t be able
to ban them from each other’s deathbeds, but I don’t think they need to be
married in order to have that.”
Smith, 61, said her views are driven by her faith and remain unchanged even
though her late twin brother was openly gay. “He has nothing to do with my
views,” she said. “This is about what the Bible says.”
Religion plays a big role in voters’ views on the matter, The Post poll
found. Among opponents of same-sex marriage, two-thirds say their religious
beliefs and opinions are the chief influence on their views.
Supporters cite more varied motivations, including personal and educational
experiences, and family and friends. Just 9 percent say religion is the
biggest influence on their views.
Age also plays a big factor in Marylanders’ views of same-sex marriage.
Sixty-four percent of those 18 to 39 support Question 6. That drops to 51
percent of those ages 40 to 64, and 40 percent of those 65 and older.
Laura Bacon, 30, is among the nearly two-thirds of Maryland voters 18 to 39
who say they will support same-sex marriage.
“It’s a view I’ve held from a pretty young age. I had several friends who
were gay and always believed it’s the next step,” she said.
Bacon graduated from the University of Maryland in 2004 and is now a
stay-at-home mother in a conservative enclave of Catonsville, in Baltimore
County. She said she doesn’t discuss the issue much with her neighbors but has
volunteered to work Thursday at a phone bank for proponents.
“I’m pretty sure it will pass,” she said.
The telephone poll was conducted Oct. 11-15 among a random sample of 1,106
Maryland adults. Interviews were conducted on conventional land-line and
cellular telephones, and in English and Spanish.
The sample of 934 registered voters and 843 likely voters each have a margin
of sampling error of plus or minus four percentage points.
Rachel Karas, Jon Cohen and Scott Clement contributed to this report.
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