World | France France: We're OK With Gay Marriage ... Right? Suddenly it's a political hot potato By Neal Colgrass Posted Nov 5, 2012 6:02 PM CST Copied In this Monday, Oct. 22, 2012 photo, Ludovic-Mohamed Zahed, right, and his live-in partner Qiyaammudeen Jantjies, who are married in South Africa, sit side-by-side in Sevran, France, outside Paris. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena) New French President Francois Hollande rode to victory promising to legalize gay marriage, and with a majority of the public supporting it, what could go wrong? A lot, it turns out: Religious and rural leaders are opposing him, ambitious conservative politicians are piping up, and even his own Socialist ministers are sniping at each other, the AP reports. The result: His "marriage for everyone" law will come later than expected and may get watered down. The debate exposes a cultural rift in France, where most people at least identify as Catholic, but civil unions remain popular among straight couples as well as gays and lesbians. One possible compromise: Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault favors gay marriage but without medically assisted reproduction like in vitro fertilization. For now, a small majority still supports gay marriage while approval of gay adoption has dipped below 50%. With own popularity declining, Hollande may have to expend more political capital on this than he expected. Read These Next Actor Sam Rockwell gets residuals from movie he wasn't in. Mid Cops: Arizona 5th graders drew up plot to 'end' a classmate. That 'buy now, pay later' loan may soon hit your credit score. Report an error