Gay marriage is still a hot topic in this country despite the fact that more American citizens approve of same-sex unions than not.

According to polls conducted by ABC News and The Washington Post, 2012 was the first year that a majority of citizes supported gay marriage. As early as 2006 the exact same polls showed that only a third of citizens approved of these unions. Yet, this progress hasn't come easily enough. Though America supposedly separates church matters from state matters, many same-sex marriage opponents cite religion as the basis for their beliefs.

Sixteen states and the District of Columbia allow gay marriage. In 2013 alone a whopping eight states legalized same-sex unions. Utah was the 17th state to allow gay marriage, but the Supreme Court has temporarily reinstated the ban. The fact of the matter is that a vast majority of states still oppose gay marriage and they are spread out all over the country. The largest concentration of states allowing same-sex nuptials is in the Northeast. In fact, the Northeastern state of Massachusetts was the first state in the entire country to allow it.

Currently, the state of Indiana is attempting to approve a constitutional amendment banning gay marriages. This is similar to the situation North Carolina residents faced in 2011 with Amendment One. Both Indiana and North Carolina already had same-sex union bans before pursuing a more stringent constitutional blockage. Unfortunately, the constitutional route just adds more insult to injury. In North Carolina, the extra ban actually hurt straight couples by getting rid of domestic partnerships and common law marriage. Hopefully, the Indiana senate looks themselves in the mirror and chooses to be on the right side of history.

Ohio, Michigan and Oregon are the next three battleground states for gay marriage opponents and supporters. Ohio Senator Rob Portman (R) was initially against gay marriage, but having a gay son changed his mind. Fellow Republican Attorney General Jim Petro also supports gay marriage. That just goes to show you that not every Republican is behind the times. Also, many democrats don't support same-sex marriage. This is truly a bipartisan issue. In Michigan it's up to U.S. District Judge Bernard Friedman to decide the issue. But in Oregon the people will decide. First, 116,000 signatures are needed for same-sex marriage to get onto the November 2014 ballot. Even Virginia may get in on the action.

If you're against gay marriage, is it because of your religion? Conversely, if you approve of gay marriage, what do you think of the states that disallow gay couples to marry? Let me know in the comments section below.