Equality advocates have welcomed a poll showing support for marriage equality has increased since the reform was enacted late last year. An Essential poll released this week has found support has increased from 61 to 65 per cent, while opposition has dropped from 32 to 26 per cent.
“Support for marriage equality is up because Australians have finally seen with their own eyes that the one and only outcome is a more equal and inclusive nation where loving, committed same-sex couples can tie the knot in front of family of friends,” said Just.equal spokesperson, Rodney Croome. “Dire predictions about the sky falling in have not come to pass because they were only ever about fear, not fact.”
Essential polling traditionally has returned a lower rate of support for marriage equality than other research companies like Galaxy, Newspoll and Crosby/Textor, although all polling has shown majority support since 2006. Last year’s postal survey returned a result of 61.6 percent support, despite lower participation rates among young people.
“If the Government had paid attention to the long history of polls showing majority support for marriage equality, rather than waste a hundred million dollars on an unnecessary, damaging postal survey, we could have had marriage equality much sooner,” said Mr Croome.
Image: Rodney Croome