Public Policy Commons^™

Backlash Or A Positive Response? Public Opinion Of Lgb Issues After Obergefell V. Hodges., Emily Kazyak, Mathew Stange

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

Following Obergefell v. Hodges, same-sex marriage remains controversial and anti-LGBT state legislation has been passed, which raises questions about whether the Supreme Court’s ruling may have created a backlash. We use data from two waves of a general population survey of Nebraskans conducted before and after the decision to answer three questions. First, we test three theories of how the Court decision influenced public opinion. We find that support for same-sex marriage was significantly higher following the ruling, suggesting that there was not a backlash to it. Second, we assess whether people perceive that the court accurately reflects the public’s …