Republican voters drive modest rise in support for marriage among parents

Gallup’s latest poll reveals that 39% of U.S. adults now rate marriage as very important for couples who have a child together, edging up one point from 2013 and climbing ten points from the 2020 low of 29%. The resurgence is driven by Republican voters, whose approval rose from 36% in 2020 to 58% in 2026, though it remains four points below its level twenty years ago. Democratic endorsement has declined sharply, dropping from 42% in 2006 to just 21% today, with only a three-point gain since 2020.

The gender gap has also narrowed, with men at 40% and women at 39% expressing this view, compared with an eight-point gap in 2006. Notably, support for marriage among parents now exceeds support for marriage among couples planning a lifelong partnership, which sits at 37%. ReconMR carried out the phone survey in May, interviewing 1,000 U.S. adults, and reports a sampling error of plus or minus four percentage points.