More Americans Now See Homosexuality as Orientation From Birth

Currently, 47 percent of Americans view being gay or lesbian as a sexual orientation individuals are born with, while 33 percent instead believe it is due to external factors such as upbringing or environment, according to a new Gallup poll. That 14-percentage-point gap in favor of "nature" over "nurture" is the largest Gallup has measured to date. As recently as two years ago, the public was evenly divided. The poll also found that 65 percent of Americans believe gay or lesbian relations between consenting adults should be legal -- numerically the highest Gallup has measured by one percentage point, but not materially different from what Gallup has measured for the past three years. Americans' support for legal gay marriage has also solidified above 50 percent.