| FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Elizabeth Ray, x130 or Mary Beth Hutchins, x105 at 703-683-5004 May 17, 2009 The 2009 NOM Massachusetts Marriage Survey
FIVE YEARS AFTER GOODRIDGE:
GAY MARRIAGE DIVIDES MASSACHUSETTS VOTERS A substantial minority of voters express fears that openly opposing gay marriage carries risks in Massachusetts
By Maggie Gallagher, President of the National Organization for Marriage
Has Opposition to Gay Marriage in Massachusetts Subsided? Five years after same-sex couples first began to enter legal marriages in Massachusetts, a new poll indicates that Massachusetts voters remain sharply divided about gay marriage. When asked, “Do you personally favor or oppose same-sex marriage generally?” 43 percent of Massachusetts voters favor same-sex marriage and 44 percent oppose same-sex marriage, with an additional 14 percent saying they don’t know or choosing not to respond. The telephone survey of 306 people taken March 30-31, 2009 is representative of voters in Massachusetts and carries a margin of error of plus or minus 5.7 percent. Massachusetts voters were also divided over the question of whether opponents of gay marriage should be free to act on the view that same-sex unions are not marriages. A majority (50 percent) agreed with the statement, “People should be free to practice their belief, even if it means they will not treat same-sex couples the same as other married couples.” Thirty-nine percent disagreed and 11 percent didn’t know or gave no response. When asked whether opposition to gay marriage was discrimination, similar to interracial marriage, 45 percent agreed and 48 percent disagreed. Do Children Need a Mom and Dad? Majority Say Yes, but Support Drops Massachusetts voters were also asked whether they agreed or disagreed with the statement, “All things being equal, it is better for children to be raised by their married mother and father.” Seventy-six percent of voters agreed (66 percent strongly); 21 percent disagreed (13 percent strongly). A similar question was asked in a 2004 poll of Massachusetts residents (not voters) shortly after the Goodridge court ruling: “All things being equal, it is better for children to be raised in a household that has a married mother and father.” In 2004, 84 percent of Massachusetts residents agreed (37 percent strongly) and 16 percent disagreed (2 percent strongly). [Norval Glenn, 2004. With This Ring: A Survey on Marriage in Massachusetts. Available at www.fatherhood.org]. Thus, in the five years since gay marriage became a reality in Massachusetts, support for the idea that the ideal is a married mother and father dropped from 84 percent to 76 percent. Interestingly, opinion on the question also became more sharply polarized: the proportion who strongly agreed that a married mom and dad is best jumped from 37 percent to 66 percent; the proportion who disagreed strongly, however, also increased sixfold, from 2 percent in 2004 to 14 percent in 2009. Fears of Retaliation Reported by Supporters of Traditional Marriage The NOM/MFI poll is also the first poll in the nation to attempt to measure the extent to which ordinary citizens feel free to oppose gay marriage in a state where gay marriage has been declared a constitutional right and is the law of the land. A surprisingly substantial minority of voters expressed fears that open opposition to gay marriage might result in retaliation or harassment of some kind. For example: • Thirty-six percent of all Massachusetts voters agreed with the statement, “Some people I know personally would be reluctant to admit they oppose gay marriage because they would worry about the consequences for them or their children.” (Twenty-four percent agreed strongly.) Among voters who oppose gay marriage: • Thirty-six percent of voters who oppose gay marriage agreed with the statement, “If you speak out against gay marriage in Massachusetts you really have to watch your back because some people may try to hurt you.” (Twenty-six percent agreed strongly.) While the majority of Massachusetts voters reject the idea that gay marriage opponents should stay silent, a surprising number expressed open support for (presumably moral) intimidation of those who oppose gay marriage. When asked to what extent they agree with the statement, “People who think marriage is only between a man and a woman SHOULD feel intimidated, because they are engaging in discrimination and no one should feel free to be for discrimination,” almost one in five voters strongly agreed, and an additional 8 percent agreed, but not strongly. The NOM/MFI Massachusetts Marriage Poll thus documents a fairly significant level of apprehension among voters who oppose gay marriage about the consequences of speaking openly or acting on their belief that marriage means a husband and wife. Of course we cannot say based on this polling data whether and to what extent the fears of Massachusetts voters expressed here are realistic. What we can say with some confidence is that five years after the first same-sex couples legally married in Massachusetts, a substantial minority of people believe it is risky to oppose gay marriage openly. About the NOM Massachusetts Marriage Poll These are the results of a telephone survey of registered voters in Massachusetts, commissioned by the National Organization for Marriage and the Massachusetts Family Institute and conducted by QEV Analytics (www.QEV.com). The obtained sample is representative of this population. A pool of individual registrants was randomly selected from among all registered voters in the Commonwealth. Interviewing was conducted during the period March 30-31, 2009. The obtained sample was weighted by race to match the known characteristics of the surveyed population. In total, 306 respondents participated in the survey, resulting in a theoretical margin of sampling error of plus or minus 5.7 percent at the 95 percent confidence level. About the National Organization for Marriage The National Organization for Marriage is a grassroots activist organization whose mission is “protecting marriage and the faith communities that sustain it.” (www.nationformarriage.org). About the Massachusetts Family Institute MFI is a non-partisan public policy organization dedicated to strengthening families in Massachusetts. (www.mafamily.org). ###
THE NOM MASSACHUSETTS MARRIAGE SURVEY SCRIPT AND TOPLINE RESULTS Hello, this is (interviewer name), and I'm calling from the Massachusetts Survey Research Center. We’re calling to learn your opinions regarding some important issues of the day. This is not a sales call; we won’t ask you to buy or do anything, and we are not calling on behalf of a candidate or political party. Your number was selected at random, and I am calling because we value your opinions on some issues facing Massachusetts today. My questions should take less than 5 minutes. 1. I am looking today to speak with people who are registered to vote in Massachusetts. Are you currently registered to vote in Massachusetts? 100% YES (CONTINUE) 0% NO (THANK AND TERMINATE) 2. Overall, would you say things in Massachusetts are generally headed in the right direction, or have things here pretty much gotten off on the wrong track? 24% RIGHT DIRECTION 67% OFF ON WRONG TRACK 9% DON'T KNOW/NO RESPONSE 3. How would you rate specifically the economic health of Massachusetts today: is it very good, fairly good, fairly poor, or very poor? 4% VERY GOOD 28% FAIRLY GOOD 43% FAIRLY POOR 24% VERY POOR 2% DON’T KNOW/NO RESPONSE 4. Do you approve or disapprove of the job Governor Deval [duh-VALL] Patrick is doing as Governor of Massachusetts? Do you feel that way strongly or not strongly? 14% APPROVE STRONGLY 23% APPROVE, NOT STRONGLY 16% DISAPPROVE, NOT STRONGLY 36% DISAPPROVE STRONGLY 10% DON'T KNOW/NO RESPONSE Next, I would like to read to you some statements that other people have made or that have been in the news recently, and ask you whether you agree or disagree with each statement. 5. Here’s the first statement: “People who believe that marriage can only be between a man and a woman are engaging in discrimination, just like those who opposed interracial marriage.” Do you agree or disagree with that statement? Do you feel that way strongly or not strongly? 39% AGREE STRONGLY 6% AGREE, NOT STRONGLY 10% DISAGREE, NOT STRONGLY 38% DISAGREE STRONGLY 6% DON'T KNOW/NO RESPONSE 44% AGREE; 48% DISAGREE 6. Here’s the next statement: “People should be free to practice their beliefs, even if it means they will not treat same-sex couples the same as other married couples.” Do you agree or disagree with that statement? Do you feel that way strongly or not strongly? 35% AGREE STRONGLY 15% AGREE, NOT STRONGLY 13% DISAGREE, NOT STRONGLY 26% DISAGREE STRONGLY 11% DON'T KNOW/NO RESPONSE 50% AGREE; 39% DISAGREE 7. Here’s the next statement: “People who think marriage is only between a man and a woman SHOULD feel intimidated, because they are engaging in discrimination, and no one should feel free to be for discrimination.” Do you agree or disagree with that statement? Do you feel that way strongly or not strongly? 19% AGREE STRONGLY 8% AGREE, NOT STRONGLY 17% DISAGREE, NOT STRONGLY 41% DISAGREE STRONGLY 14% DON'T KNOW/NO RESPONSE 27% AGREE; 58% DISAGREE 8. And here’s the next statement: “Some people I know personally would be reluctant to admit they oppose gay marriage because they would worry about the consequences for them or their children.” 24% AGREE STRONGLY 12% AGREE, NOT STRONGLY 14% DISAGREE, NOT STRONGLY 37% DISAGREE STRONGLY 13% DON'T KNOW/NO RESPONSE 36% AGREE; 51% DISAGREE 9. Do you personally favor or oppose same-sex marriage generally? 43% FAVOR 44% OPPOSE 14% DON'T KNOW/NO RESPONSE 10. [ASKED ONLY THOSE OPPOSED] Here is another statement others have made. Again, I would like to get your opinion: “If you speak out against gay marriage in Massachusetts, you really have to watch your back because some people may try to hurt you.” Do you agree or disagree with that statement? Do you feel that way strongly or not strongly? 26% AGREE STRONGLY 10% AGREE, NOT STRONGLY 17% DISAGREE, NOT STRONGLY 41% DISAGREE STRONGLY 7% DON'T KNOW/NO RESPONSE 57% NOT ASKED 36% AGREE; 58% DISAGREE 11. [ASKED ONLY THOSE OPPOSED] Do you personally know someone – a friend, a neighbor, someone at work, someone you see from time to time – who feels they were harassed, or intimidated on account of their belief that marriage can only be between a man and a woman? 15% YES 79% NO 6% DON'T KNOW/NO RESPONSE 57% NOT ASKED 12. [ALL] Let’s talk about public schools. Do you think that the public schools in your area teach children about same-sex marriage, that men can marry other men and women marry other women, or do the schools not teach children about same-sex marriage? 15% TEACH ABOUT SAME-SEX MARRIAGE 47% DO NOT TEACH ABOUT SAME SEX MARRIAGE 38% DON'T KNOW/NO RESPONSE 13. Here’s one more statement: “All things being equal, it is better for children to be raised by their married mother and a father?” Do you agree or disagree with that statement? Do you feel that way strongly or not strongly? 66% AGREE STRONGLY 10% AGREE, NOT STRONGLY 8% DISAGREE, NOT STRONGLY 13% DISAGREE STRONGLY 3% DON'T KNOW/NO RESPONSE 76% AGREE; 21% DISAGREE I have just a few more questions to ask you for statistical purposes … 14. Gender [BY OBSERVATION, DO NOT READ UNLESS UNCERTAIN] 49% MALE 51% FEMALE 0% NO RESPONSE 15. Are you currently married or are you single? [IF SINGLE] Have you ever been married? 67% MARRIED 21% SINGLE, PREVIOUSLY MARRIED 11% SINGLE, NOT PREVIOUSLY MARRIED 2% NO RESPONSE 16. Do you have any children? [IF YES] Are any of your children under 18 years of age? 18% NO CHILDREN 56% HAVE CHILDREN, NONE UNDER 18 25% HAVE CHILDREN, ONE OR MORE UNDER 18 1% NO RESPONSE 17. [IF CHILDREN UNDER 18] Are any of your children currently attending a public school in Massachusetts? 69% YES 31% NO 0% DON'T KNOW/NO RESPONSE 75% NOT ASKED 18. [IF NO CHILDREN UNDER 18] Do you have any grandchildren who currently attend a public school in Massachusetts? 49% YES 52% NO 0% DON'T KNOW/NO RESPONSE 44% NOT ASKED 19. Do you consider yourself to be a Democrat, a Republican, or an Independent? [IF DEMOCRAT OR REPUBLICAN] Do you consider yourself to be a strong [DEMOCRAT/REPUBLICAN] or not? 26% STRONG DEMOCRAT 4% WEAK DEMOCRAT 9% STRONG REPUBLICAN 4% WEAK REPUBLICAN 55% INDEPENDENT 1% NONE OF THESE/OTHER [VOLUNTEERED RESPONSE ONLY] 2% DON’T KNOW/NO RESPONSE [DO NOT READ] 20. Which of the following best describes your religious preference: are you … [READ OPTIONS] 31% PROTESTANT, OR ANY OTHER CHRISTIAN, OTHER THAN CATHOLIC 49% CATHOLIC *% JEWISH 1% MUSLIM 9% OTHER, OR 9% NONE 1% DON’T KNOW/REFUSED [DO NOT READ] 21. In a typical month, how often do you go to Church or to a religious service? [RECORD ACTUAL NUMBER] 35% 0 8% 1 10% 2 7% 3 27% 4 13% 5+ 10% DON’T KNOW/NO RESPONSE 22. In what year were you born, please? [RECORD EXACT RESPONSE] 20% 18 - 50 22% 51 - 60 30% 61 - 75 24% 76 + 5% DON’T KNOW/NO RESPONSE 23. What do you consider to be your main racial or ethnic heritage: African-American and not Hispanic, White and not Hispanic, Hispanic, Asian-American, or other? 1% AFRICAN-AMERICAN/NON-HISPANIC 79% WHITE/NON-HISPANIC 4% HISPANIC 1% ASIAN-AMERICAN 4% NATIVE-AMERICAN 9% OTHER 4% DON’T KNOW/NO RESPONSE That's the last of my questions. Thank you very much for your time and participation. |
