New Poll Finds Likely Voters Oppose Prop. 8, But By Slimmer Margins

A new poll released Wednesday found that California’s gay marriage ban, Proposition 8, is losing among likely voters 52% to 44%.

But comparing those results to previous polls conducted by the same organization indicates that the margin is tightening, not widening. Last month, likely voters said they would vote against the measure 55% to 41%, and in August likely voters opposed it 55% to 40%. Support for Prop. 8 among Republicans has risen to 70%, up from 62% in September; and Democrats now oppose the initiative by only 67%, down from 71% last month.

In the presidential race, Sen. Barack Obama’s lead over Sen. John McCain has grown to 23 points (56% to 33%), a 13-point gain since September.

The new statewide telephone survey of 2,004 adult residents was conducted by the Public Policy Institute of California from October 12-19 and the margin of error among the poll’s 1,186 likely voters is +/- 3%.