Support for same-sex marriage hits record in U.S., survey shows

(CNN) – A record 70% of Americans support legal recognition of same-sex marriage, according to a new survey from Gallup. That’s the highest level of support seen since Gallup began tracking the issue in 1996, when only 27% of Americans were in favor of legal recognition.

The current 70% also marks a 10 percentage point increase from 2015, when the Supreme Court ruled that same-sex couples could marry in any state.

The increase is largely due to changes in opinion by Republicans, who previously generally opposed legalizing same-sex marriages, according to Gallup.

This year’s poll marks the first time that a majority of Republicans support same-sex marriage, with 55% favoring legal recognition. Democratic support is at 83%, roughly the level it has been in recent years. Independents are slightly more in favor than in previous years, with 73% support in that group.

While there are still differences between age groups that support same-sex marriage, there is greater support across the board: 84% of young adults, 72% of middle-aged adults, and 60% of older adults say they are in favor of same-sex marriages.

The data comes from Gallup’s annual Values ​​and Beliefs Survey, which was conducted last month.