Politics

Poll shows most Georgians are opposed to gay marriage

ATLANTA — President Barack Obama made history this week by publicly supporting same-sex marriage but it may have hurt his chances of winning over voters in Georgia.

A Landmark Communications/Rosetta Stone poll conducted exclusively for Channel 2 Action News showed a majority of Georgians remain opposed to same-sex marriage.

The number is just a slight decrease from 2004 when three-quarters of voting Georgians adopted a state constitutional amendment banning the act. 

Six hundred Georgians were polled and 59.4 percent said they oppose changing Georgia's laws to permit same-sex marriage. About 27 percent are in favor of changing the law and 13 percent remain undecided. The poll had a margin of error of four percent.

The announcement made by Obama was the first by a sitting president, and Republican challenger Mitt Romney swiftly disagreed with it. "I believe that marriage is between a man and a woman," he said while campaigning.

On Tuesday, voters in North Carolina — a potential battleground in the fall election — approved an amendment to the state constitution affirming that marriage may only be a union of a man and a woman. Obama made his announcement the next day during an interview with ABC News.

 If the election were held today who would you vote for? Barack Obama Mitt Romney
  40% 51%
 Would you support or oppose changing Georgia's law to permit same-sex marriage? Support Oppose
  27% 59%
 Does the president's support of same-sex marriage make you more or less likely to vote for him?  
More Likely Less Likely
  29% 53%
 Landmark/Rosetta Stone Poll - 600 Voters - Margin of error +/-4%    

Channel 2 political analyst Bill Crane said it was obvious that the president was not playing to voters in states like Georgia.


"They're playing to several other swing states and specific populations.  They already have a significant lead among women," Crane told Channel 2's Lori Geary.

Just 28 percent of voters polled said they were now more likely to vote for Obama because of his support of gay marriage as opposed to 53 percent who said they are less likely to vote for the president.

A large majority of Georgia voters, 64 percent, who said they were undecided about who they would vote for in November, said they were less likely to vote for Obama now.

The poll showed Romney holding an 11-point lead over Obama, 51 percent to 40 percent, if the presidential election were held today. The race is dead even in metro Atlanta with the candidates tied at 47 percent, however Romney leads by 20 percent outside the region.

http://bcove.me/tvdf8k85

WSBTV

Most Read