Marriage age rises in Utah — but folks still marry young
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Utahns get married at younger ages than people in any other state — but they're waiting longer.
The big picture: As more Americans say they'll never tie the knot, matrimony is increasingly becoming a partisan issue, with conservatives prescribing marriage as a solution to social problems, attacking no-fault divorce and focusing particular ire on women who stay single.
- For years, Republicans have been more likely to be married than Democrats are.
By the numbers: The median age of Utahns getting married for the first time was 26 in 2023 — down slightly from 2022, but up from 24.5 in 2010, according to census data.
- Nationally, the median marriage age rose even faster, from 27.7 in 2010 to 29.7 in 2023.
Flashback: Compare that to 1950, when the median age nationally was around 22, per the U.S. Census Bureau's Current Population Survey.
Zoom in: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Utah's dominant religion, has for generations encouraged members not to delay marriage.
- Gov. Spencer Cox has made promoting marriage a policy priority.
Zoom out: Washington, D.C., New York and California residents are the oldest at their first marriage, around 31, while Utah, Idaho and West Virginia residents are the youngest, around 27, recent data shows.
The intrigue: Age at marriage has been a point of particular partisan contention.
- From Charlie Kirk to the Heritage Foundation, conservatives have been arguing that delaying marriage is bad.
- In recent years, Republican lawmakers have opposed child marriage bans in multiple states. In New Hampshire last year, a GOP lawmaker described girls as "ripe" and "fertile" as he argued child marriage would discourage abortion.