A sweeping new Gallup poll released this week paints a sobering picture of eroding support for LGBTQ+ rights in America, with acceptance of same-sex marriage, gay relationships, and transgender identity all declining since 2022. The drop, however, masks a starkly partisan story: the collapse in support comes almost entirely from Republicans, whose views have undergone a dramatic reversal in less than five years.
The Numbers
According to the poll, 65% of Americans now believe same-sex marriages should be legal, down from a peak of 71% in 2022. Support for gay and lesbian relationships as morally acceptable has fallen to 62%, the lowest level Gallup has recorded since 2016. For transgender people, the picture is grimmer: only 38% of Americans find gender transition morally acceptable, down from 46% when Gallup first asked the question in 2021.
These declines reverse what had appeared to be a steady, decades-long climb toward greater acceptance. From 1996 to 2022, support for same-sex marriage had climbed from 27% to 71%. Now, in just four years, that hard-won progress is eroding.
A Republican Reversal
The real story lies in the partisan divide. Democratic support for same-sex marriage has held steady at 87% since 2022, and independent support has only dipped modestly. But among Republicans, the reversal is severe. In 2021 and 2022, 55% of Republicans favored same-sex marriage; today that figure sits at just 37%, an 18-point collapse. Republican views on the morality of gay and lesbian relationships have fallen from 56% to 35%, meaning nearly two-thirds of the Republican Party now considers same-sex relationships immoral. Only 5% of Republicans believe gender transition is morally acceptable, compared with 60% of Democrats.
Deliberate Strategy, Not Accident
These shifts did not happen organically. Major religious and conservative organizations have openly pursued campaigns to roll back LGBTQ+ acceptance. The Alliance Defending Freedom, a far-right Christian Nationalist group with more than $100 million in annual fundraising, has explicitly made the elimination of marriage equality part of its stated strategy. Meanwhile, Republican leaders and media have spent years amplifying hostility toward LGBTQ+ people, from Florida's 2022
Sources: Erin in the Morning, them., The Advocate
Cover photo: Jan van der Wolf / Pexels
