American's support for same-sex marriage declines for first time since 2015: Public Religion Research Institute survey

Same-sex marriages no longer receive the same level of support as they formerly did, according to a study from the Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI).

Data shows that support for same-sex unions has dropped for the first time since 2015. The PRRI American Values Atlas survey found that between 2022 and 2023, support among American adults dropped from 69 percent to 67 percent.

Additionally, the poll revealed that, for the first time since 2018, support for LGBTQ people's nondiscrimination protections has declined. The percentage of Americans who supported the measures dropped to 76 percent last year from a peak of 80 percent in 2022.

This comes at a time when the number of people identifying as LGBTQ is on the rise.

A new Gallup poll shows that 7.6 percent of US adults identify as LGBTQ, compared to 3.5 percent in 2012.

Furthermore, the PPRI survey found that more than one in five Gen Z adults between the ages of 18 to 23 identify as LGBTQ. Each younger generation is approximately twice as likely to identify as LGBTQ as the previous generation, according to the data.

On Tuesday, Melissa Deckman, the CEO of PRRI, said in a statement: "Our survey shows that support for LGBTQ rights has dipped slightly from 2022 to 2023, although the vast majority of Americans continue to endorse anti-discrimination protections for LGBTQ Americans and the rights of same-sex couples to marry."

"The growing partisan divide on these issues show the effect of the continuous use of LGBTQ identity and LGBTQ rights as a wedge issue in our nation’s culture wars," added Deckman.

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) announced in January that state legislatures have submitted more than 275 laws pertaining to LGBTQ rights. The legislation targeted topics such as trans-identified biological men competing in women's sports, the freedom of students to choose their gender in schools without parental consent, and sex change procedures for minors and adults, per The Hill.

PRRI conducted the American Values Atlas survey between March 9 and December 7, 2023, with a sample of 22,465 American adults. It has a margin of error of plus or minus 0.82 percentage points.