Poll: New Jerseyans Still Split On Gay Marriage
TRENTON, N.J. (CBSNewYork/AP) - New Jersey is the only state in the Tri-State Area without gay marriage, and a new poll shows people are still split on the issue, WCBS 880's Levon Putney reported.
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53 percent of those surveyed in the new Quinnipiac University poll said they would support a gay marriage law, and that is down 4 percent from a poll conducted in March.
67 percent said they agree with Gov. Chris Christie's call for a ballot referendum on the issue.
"I think the people should be given the right to vote," the New Jersey Family Policy Council's Len Deo told Putney. He'd prefer a vote on marriage, like he said southern states did.
He wants the question to be "Should marriage remain as the union of one man and one woman?"
"That's a bunch of hogwash," said Garden State Equality's Steven Goldstein. He said a public vote would just invite opponents to spend millions on advertising.
"[The advertising would] try to influence voters and corrupt the political system," said Goldstein.
Deo said civil unions allow for the same rights as marriage.
Goldstein pointed out that a lawsuit has been filed in New Jersey claiming separate is not equal.
In a related matter, 64 percent of respondents said President Barack Obama's recent endorsement of same-sex marriage will not affect their presidential vote in November.
The Quinnipiac poll was a telephone survey of 1,582 registered voters, and was conducted May 9-14. The error margin was plus or minus 2.5 percentage points.
Where do you stand on gay marriage? Sound off in the comments section below.
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