The Republican presidential hopeful Mike Huckabee on Sunday said same-sex marriage was like drinking and swearing – a concept appealing to others but not to him as a Christian.

The former Arkansas governor, appearing on CNN, said forcing people opposed to same-sex marriage to accept it was the same as telling Jews they had to serve “bacon-wrapped shrimp in their deli”.

“We’re not going to do that,” he said, adding: “We’re not going to ask a Muslim to serve up, ah, something that is offensive to him, to have dogs in his backyard.

“We’re so sensitive to make sure we don’t offend certain religions, but then we act like Christians can’t have the convictions that they have had for over 2,000 years.”

Huckabee, a former Baptist minister, showed strongly in the 2008 Republican primaries, winning the Iowa caucus. In January, he announced he was quitting his Fox News show in order to explore another run for the presidency in 2016.

“I’d like to think there is room in America for people to disagree instead of screaming and shouting and having to shut their businesses down,” he said, adding: “People can be my friends who have lifestyles that are not necessarily my lifestyle. I don’t shut people out of my circle or out of my life because they have a different point of view.

“I don’t drink alcohol, but gosh – a lot of my friends, maybe most of them, do. You know, I don’t use profanity, but believe me, I’ve got a lot of friends who do. Some people really like classical music and ballet and opera – it’s not my cup of tea.”

Same-sex marriage is now legal in 36 states and the District of Columbia. Alabama could become the 37th state to allow it, pending the outcome of a legal fight stoked by resistance by the state government to a judge’s repeated rulings. The US supreme court is due to rule on the issue this year.

Same-sex marriages occurred in Huckabee’s home state, Arkansas, in May 2014, but are currently on hold pending an appeal. The state banned the practice in a 2004 constitutional amendment that was approved by voters.

Polls show 30% support for same-sex marriage among voters who identify themselves as Republicans.

“For me — this is not just a political issue,” Huckabee said. “It is a biblical issue. And unless I get a new version of the scriptures it’s really not my place to just say, ‘OK, I’m just going to evolve.’”

Huckabee is currently promoting a book, God, Guns, Grits and Gravy, which heralds what he says are the values of the states located between the more liberal east and west coasts. The book has courted some controversy, notably over his contention that President Obama was unwise to let his teenage daughters listen to music by Beyoncé and Jay-Z.

Huckabee did not answer a question about whether he thought being gay was a choice, but said he appreciated different viewpoints on gay marriage and was friends with gay people.