A majority of Australians in some of the nation's most conservative electorates have backed the same same-sex marriage movement, a new poll revealed on Monday.
ReachTel polled Australians living in 12 conservative seats, including Treasurer Scott Morrison's seat of Cook, Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce's seat of New England and Trade Minister Steve Ciobo's electorate of Moncrieff, finding that a majority of voters in all 12 of the electorates polled supported same-sex marriage, Xinhua news agency reported.
A majority of voters also said that it was "very important" that the issue should be resolved in Parliament in 2017.
Deputy Prime Minister Joyce is against legalising same-sex marriage in Australia, but 50.5 per cent of voters in his seat are for allowing same-sex couples to marry, while 39 per cent opposed.
More than 56 per cent of people in Treasurer Morrison's seat would like to see same-sex couples be given the same rights as other Australians, while 61.2 per cent of those in the safe Liberal seat of Moncrieff in Queensland said they support same-sex marriage.
The poll was commissioned by Australians for Equality and asked the opinion of 700 people in each electorate.
The movement's director, Tiernan Brady said the results reflected "what we are seeing in town hall meetings all around Australia".
"This won't go away, this doesn't need to be a political football, a clear majority of voters in every party want this," Brady told the media on Monday.
There is currently a push within government to allow a free vote on the issue before the federal budget is handed down in May, however Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has said a plebiscite, or non-binding public vote, would still take place later this year.
--IANS
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