With 17 states and Washington, D.C. allowing same-sex couples to share in the freedom to marry, a major shift in attitudes within the Republican party is increasingly emerging.

In a recent memo from Young Conservatives for the Freedom to Marry, they cite a surge in support coming from Republicans of all ages, as conservatives across generations are changing the way they think about marriage for same-sex couples.

Recent surveys from Pew, Washington Post/ABC News, and New York Times show:

• for the first time, more than 60% of Republican and Republican leaners under 30 support the freedom to marry;
• nearly two-thirds of young evangelicals support the freedom to marry; and
• 40% of Republicans now support marriage for same-sex couples.

Although support for the freedom to marry has been growing among all political and demographic groups, Republican support is growing even faster than we could have expected -- one poll shows a 15% increase in less than two years. This fast-growing support, although surprising, is consistent with conservative values of individual liberty, responsibility, and family stability.

Beyond the increases in public opinion support for marriage, the momentum occurring within the states is even more noteworthy. Various concrete changes have come from GOP policymakers at the state level in just the past several weeks. According to Young Conservatives for the Freedom to Marry:

• In Michigan, a federal judge—appointed by Ronald Reagan—ruled that the state’s ban on marriage is unconstitutional.
• In Nevada, Governor Brian Sandoval sided with his attorney general in not defending marriage discrimination in his state.
• In Kentucky, a federal judge—appointed by George H.W. Bush and recommended by Senator Mitch McConnell—ruled that out-of-state marriages by gay couples must be respected in the Bluegrass State.
• In New Mexico, Governor Susana Martinez called the freedom to marry in her state “the law of the land.”
• In Illinois, despite aggressive anti-gay attacks by opponents, the three Republican members of the state House of Representatives who voted for marriage in 2013 won their primary races on March 18.
• On March 4, a group of Republicans from the West signed a historic friend-of-the-court brief in favor of the freedom to marry. Signers included former Senators Alan Simpson (WY) and Nancy Kassebaum (KS), as well as Sean Sullivan, counsel for Romney’s 2012 presidential campaign in Colorado. Seven Republican lawmakers from Wyoming also backed the freedom to marry the same week the brief was filed.

Young Conservatives for the Freedom to Marry rightly state that the statewide wins for same-sex marriage are due in part to these shifting attitudes:

“Marriage equality is legal in many of the 17 states because Republicans joined up and voted for it. Without GOP state legislators and voters taking a stand, many of these wins could not have happened. Democratic and Independent support alone wouldn’t have cut it.”

The changing tide in Republican attitudes towards same-sex marriage is crucial to our movement, and we must continue to transform this support into state and local legislative wins.

Click here to read the full memo.