Raleigh, N.C. – By more than a 2-1 margin, Utah voters oppose legal same-sex marriage. 66% think it should be illegal, while only 27% think it should be legal. However, even in Utah, a 42-39 plurality of voters 18-29 support legal same-sex marriage. There is a stark divide between Mormons and non-Mormons on the issue. Mormons oppose legal same-sex marriage 81-13, while those of another religion support it 63-29. When civil unions are included as an option, those opposing all recognition are in the minority with 23% favoring marriage, 37% civil unions, and 39% opposing all recognition.
While the Mormon church has a history of supporting polygamy and opposing interracial marriage, this rests firmly in the past for Utah voters. By a 75-14 margin, voters feel polygamy should be illegal. This margin is actually greater among Mormons than non-Mormons. Mormons oppose legal polygamy 78-14 compared to 70-16 for non-Mormons. Similarly, Utah voters have moved forward on interracial marriage with 88% feeling it should be legal, compared to only 5% who feel it should be illegal.
Utah’s freshman senator, Mike Lee, has only a tepid 35-31 approval rating despite Republicans outnumbering Democrats 50-22 in Utah. Lee is a polarizing figure with a 53-12 rating among Republicans and a 6-60 rating among Democrats. Independents also see Lee poorly, rating him only 24-44. Bob Bennett, Lee’s predecessor who was ousted in the Utah Republican convention, is seen more favorably with a 48-34 favorability rating. Even Democrats like him, giving Bennett a 42-34 rating. With such crossover appeal, one might expect Bennett to be enormously popular in Utah, but Republicans see Bennett favorably by only a 50-32 margin.
Utah voters are divided over their favorite college sports team with 35% for BYU to 33% for Utah, 11% for Utah State, 5% for Southern Utah, 4% for Weber State, and 1% for Utah Valley. While Mormons support BYU by a strong 48-21 margin over Utah, only 3% of non-Mormons support BYU compared to 61% who support Utah.
PPP surveyed 732 Utah voters from July 8th to 10th. The margin of error for the survey is +/-3.6%. This poll was not paid for or authorized by any campaign or political organization. PPP surveys are conducted through automated telephone interviews. PPP is a Democratic polling company, but polling expert Nate Silver of the New York Times found that its surveys in 2010 actually exhibited a slight bias toward Republican candidates.
Topline results are below. Full results, including crosstabs, can be found here.
Q1 Do you approve or disapprove of Senator Mike
Lee’s job performance?
Approve ……………… 35%
Disapprove………….. 31%
Not sure ……………… 34%
Q2 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Bob Bennett?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 48%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 34%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 19%
Q3 Do you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion
of Rob Bishop?
Favorable……………………………………………….. 32%
Unfavorable ……………………………………………. 30%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 38%
Q4 Do you think same-sex marriage should be
legal or illegal?
Legal ………………….. 27%
Illegal …………………. 66%
Not sure ……………… 7%
Q5 Which of the following best describes your
opinion on gay marriage: gay couples should
be allowed to legally marry, or gay couples
should be allowed to form civil unions but not
legally marry, or there should be no legal
recognition of a gay couple’s relationship?
Gay couples should
be allowed to legally
marry………………….. 23%
Gay couples should
be allowed to form
civil unions but not
marry………………….. 37%
There should be no
legal recognition of
a gay couple’s
relationship …………. 39%
Not sure ……………… 1%
Q6 Do you think interracial marriage should be
legal or illegal?
Legal ………………….. 88%
Illegal …………………. 5%
Not sure ……………… 7%
Q7 Do you think polygamy should be legal or
illegal?
Legal ………………….. 14%
Illegal …………………. 75%
Not sure ……………… 10%
Q8 What college do you most root for in sports:
Brigham Young, Southern Utah, Utah, Utah
State, Utah Valley, or Weber State?
BYU ………………………………………………………. 35%
Southern Utah…………………………………………. 5%
Utah ………………………………………………………. 33%
Utah State………………………………………………. 11%
Utah Valley……………………………………………… 1%
Weber State……………………………………………. 4%
Not sure …………………………………………………. 10%
Q9 Would you describe yourself as very liberal,
somewhat liberal, moderate, somewhat
conservative, or very conservative?
Very liberal ……………………………………………… 8%
Somewhat liberal …………………………………….. 14%
Moderate………………………………………………… 25%
Somewhat conservative……………………………. 29%
Very conservative ……………………………………. 23%
Q10 If you are a woman, press 1. If a man, press 2.
Woman ………………………………………………….. 53%
Man……………………………………………………….. 47%
Q11 If you are a Democrat, press 1. If a Republican,
press 2. If you are an independent or identify
with another party, press 3.
Democrat ……………………………………………….. 22%
Republican……………………………………………… 50%
Independent/Other…………………………………… 28%
Q12 If you are white, press 1. If other, press 2.
White …………………………………………………….. 94%
Other……………………………………………………… 6%
Q13 If you are 18 to 29 years old, press 1. If 30 to
45, press 2. If 46 to 65, press 3. If you are
older than 65, press 4.
18 to 29………………………………………………….. 10%
30 to 45………………………………………………….. 30%
46 to 65………………………………………………….. 37%
Older than 65………………………………………….. 23%
Q14 Are you a Mormon or another religion?
Mormon………………………………………………….. 70%
Another religion……………………………………….. 30%
