Young leaders of the Nationals have ramped up pressure on opponents of same-sex marriage, voting to support reform and condemning the actions of their party elders.

At their annual conference on the weekend, the NSW Young Nationals passed motions supporting same-sex marriage and a free vote for the partyroom, and expressed "disappointment and disillusionment" with the actions of their federal leaders.

Same-sex marriage could be further away now than before. Credit:Wolter Peeters

A statement released by the youth wing of the junior Coalition party said it was an important issue in regional Australia and that "a young homosexual man living in regional NSW is six times more likely to commit suicide" than other members of the community.

"This outcome continues a proud NSW Young Nats tradition of working within the Nationals to push the envelope ... challenging our senior counterparts and leading the debate on important issues to young people in regional NSW."