Gap shrinking in Calif. anti-gay amendment

By 365gay Newscenter Staff

(San Francisco, California) A monthly tracking of California voters finds a slim margin opposing a proposed constitutional ban on same-sex marriage.

The new Public Policy Institute of California survey finds that the ban, known as Proposition 8, is losing among likely voters, 52 percent to 44 percent. But when the margin of error is factored in, it is almost a dead heat.

The Public Policy Institute is the only survey in California that tracks voters on a monthly basis.

The October poll shows the gap between the two sides has narrowed since September, when 41 percent favored the proposition while 55 opposed it; and August, when the spread was 40 percent who said they would vote for the ban as opposed to 54 who would reject it.

On the more general question of how they feel about allowing gay and lesbian couples to legally marry in California, likely voters are divided, 47 percent in favor and 49 percent opposed. These attitudes are largely unchanged since 2005.

The survey also is at odds with other recent polls.

Earlier this week a poll conducted by Marist College Institute of Public Opinion for the Knights of Columbus found 52 percent of likely voters would support the amendment while 43 percent would reject it.

The Roman Catholic group has helped raise millions of dollars for the campaign in favor of the proposed amendment.



A SurveyUSA poll taken earlier this month for four TV stations across the state found that 47 percent of likely voters would support the measure with 42 percent opposing it.

Political analysts suggest the differences in the three polls is the result of the specific questions put to voters, the selection of the samples and the number of people sampled.

In 2004, San Francisco mayor Gavin Newsom began allowing marriage licenses to be issued to same-sex couples. The state took the mayor to court arguing he had overstepped his authority and the California Supreme Court agreed. As a result the more than 8,000 marriages that had been performed were declared void.

The ruling, however, did not directly address the issue of the constitutionality of the state ban on same-sex marriage and LGBT civil rights activists began a separate court action challenging the prohibition.

In May, the court court ruled that denying same-sex couples the right to wed violated the California constitution.

*365Gay.com