Voters Back Bush on Same-Sex Marriage

March 10 -- There may be a political bonus in President Bush's position on same-sex marriages: Voters who call it a make-or-break issue disproportionately take his side, according to an ABCNEWS/Washington Post poll.

The poll found 22 percent of Americans both support a constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriages and say they would only back a presidential candidate who shares their position on such marriages. It's a decisive issue for fewer, 13 percent, who want states to settle the question rather than amending the constitution.

The division is greater on the issue of same-sex marriage more generally: 28 percent say they'd only vote for a candidate who opposes same-sex marriages, while just 8 percent would only vote for one who supports such marriages.

The president and Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, both oppose same-sex marriages, though Bush has done so much more prominently. And Bush supports amending the Constitution, while Kerry does not.

Overall, there's greater opposition to same-sex marriages than there is support for them, and there's also much greater intensity of sentiment among opponents. And while more people oppose than support a constitutional amendment, political equations sometimes follow the intensity of views and salience of issues, not just the majority sentiment.

The issue is not a compelling one for most Americans. Same-sex marriage finishes last in importance among 12 issues measured in this ABCNEWS/Washington Post poll, with 36 percent saying it's very important in deciding their vote. That lags behind top issues like the economy, jobs and terrorism by more than 40 percentage points.

However, among opponents of same-sex marriages, 41 percent call it "very important" in their choice of candidate, and among "strong" opponents, 48 percent call it "very important." Among same-sex marriage supporters, by contrast, just 27 percent call it a "very important" issue.

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