LOS ANGELES (AP) – More than half of all Californians believe gay and lesbian relationships between consenting adults are not a moral concern, and nearly a third believe same-sex marriages should be legalized, according to a Los Angeles Times poll.

The poll also found Californians narrowly oppose adopting an amendment to the Constitution that would prevent states from recognizing gay and lesbian marriages.

The poll, which surveyed 1,571 adults from April 17-21, had a sampling error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.

Its results show Californians are decidedly more liberal than the rest of the country in their acceptance of gay and lesbian relationships and same-sex marriages.

A similar poll conducted nationally by the Times in March found only 25 percent in favor of same-sex marriages, while 48 percent said they believed same-sex relationships were “morally wrong.”

Only 40 percent of those polled in California believe same-sex relationships are morally wrong, while nearly a third support same-sex marriages.

The new Times poll also found 51 percent of Californians opposing a constitutional amendment outlawing same-sex marriages, while 43 percent were in favor. That was the reverse of the national poll’s findings.

When it came to civil unions, which stop short of granting all the rights of marriage, Californians were closer in step with the rest of the country, according to the poll. Forty percent of Californians said same-sex couples should be allowed to form such unions but not marry, about the same as the national average.

Young adults, both in California and nationally, were more likely to favor same-sex marriage. Nearly half of Californians between 18 and 29 who were polled supported same-sex marriage, compared with 44 percent nationwide.

Older Californians, however, were more likely than senior citizens nationwide to support same-sex marriages and civil unions, with 20 percent of Californians 65 or older favoring same-sex marriage, compared with 10 percent nationally.

California Republicans were also more liberal on the civil union issue than Republicans nationwide.

The numbers of Republicans supporting same-sex marriages in both polls were about the same (8 percent in California and 6 percent nationwide), but about half of California’s Republicans said they supported same-sex civil unions, compared with only 38 percent of Republicans nationwide.