Majority Of U.S. – Including Catholics – Now Support Same-Sex Marriage

53% of Americans, and 63% of Catholics in the U.S. now support the right of same-sex couples to marry, a new poll confirms. This is the third national poll that finds a majority of Americans are saying “I do,” when asked if same-sex marriage should be allowed. Last summer, similar AP and CNN polls found a majority of Americans also supporting marriage equality.

In the poll, released by ABC News and the Washington Post Friday morning, men and women evenly supported same-sex marriage at 53%. This is the first time a majority of men have offered support for marriage equality. Support among whites (53%) and non-whites (54%) was statistically even.

Greatest support was found with Liberals (76%), Democrats (64%), and those 18 -49 (68% to 52%). The lowest support was found with Conservatives (29%), Republicans (31%), and those Americans 50 – 64 (45%) and 65 and older (33%).

Brian Brown, President of the National Organization for Marriage, unsurprisingly took issue with the poll, stating, “The only poll that counts is a free and fair vote on the part of the people.” Brown added, “We’ve seen these biased polls time and time again — right before votes in which same-sex marriage is rejected. It’s absurd. The people of this country have not changed their opinion about marriage.”

But it’s clear, according to every major national poll taken, that support for same-sex marriage is growing in America, which is behind the times around the world. Next month, the Netherlands will celebrate their ten-year anniversary of support for marriage equality.

Phil Attey, Executive Director of Catholics for Equality called the results, “heartening, but not surprising,” and added, “American Catholics support for LGBT equality more than most Americans,” because “we base our moral understanding of the world through our personal relationships, not by the dictates of institutions, be they our institutional church or LGBT political groups.”

This week, in response to the President’s announcement in February that he would no longer defend DOMA in court, both the House and the Senate introduced bills to repeal DOMA, the Defense of Marriage Act that bans the federal government from recognizing same-sex marriages. 51% of Americans want DOMA repealed.