A majority of Americans, including most people of faith, support legalized abortion in some form and only 9% want the procedure banned outright, according to a new survey by Public Religion Research Institute.
The study, “Abortion Views in All 50 States,” also uncovered a direct link between Christian nationalism and voter opposition or support for state abortion laws.
“Christian nationalism is a political ideology that holds the U.S. was founded and should remain an explicitly Christian nation,” PRRI CEO Melissa Deckman explained during the May 2 webinar release of the poll. “Christian nationalists are looking to enforce their theological views in terms of actual policy.”
Only a quarter of adherents to Christian nationalism and 40% of sympathizers said they support the legality of abortion in all or most situations, the study found. In contrast, 93% of those who reject Christian nationalism and 67% of its skeptics said they back abortion rights in all or most cases.
The study included interviews with 22,000 adults. “As in years past, this analysis measures Americans’ attitudes toward the legality of abortion, views on abortion pills, and how much abortion matters for voting,” PRRI noted.
Conducted from March 9 to Dec. 7, 2023, the survey uncovered strong support for legalized abortion in all or most cases across the U.S. population, with 64% of Americans approving and 35% opposed.
Backing for abortion rights is significant across several religious traditions, with Unitarian Universalists (93%), Jewish Americans (81%), Buddhists (79%), Catholics of color (73%), Black Protestants (71%) and white Mainline Protestants (68%) leading the way, researchers said. Smaller majorities were recorded among white Catholics (62%), Muslims (60%), Hispanic Catholics (57%) and other Protestants of color (52%).
“By contrast, Jehovah’s Witnesses (25%), white evangelical Protestants (27%), Latter-day Saints (30%), and Hispanic Protestants (40%) are the only major religious groups in which less than half of adherents support the legality of abortion. Among religiously unaffiliated Americans, 87% say abortion should be legal in most or all cases.”
Partisan identity
Partisan identity turned out to be a major predictor of division on the issue of abortion, PRRI reports.
“Republicans and Democrats are deeply divided on abortion, with a 50-point gap between them: 86% of Democrats say abortion should be legal in all or most cases, compared with 36% of Republicans. Just 15% of Republicans believe abortion should be illegal in all cases.”
Support for abortion rights among Democrats grew from 71% in 2010 to the 86% measured last year. Among independents, the increase spiked from 54% to 67% since 2010.
“Generally speaking, Republican attitudes about abortion legality have essentially stayed the same,” Deckman added, with support edging up from 35% in 2010 to 36% in 2023.
Most states approve
When it examined support across states, PRRI found only five states where minorities of residents support abortion in some or all situations — North and South Dakota at 47%, Arkansas at 46% and Idaho and Utah at 45%.
“In most cases, by contrast, we find support for abortion legality is high in most states,” Deckman explained. Hawaii (79%), Massachusetts (78%), Nevada and Vermont (76%) were out front in that category, while 10 additional states and the District of Columbia showed abortion approval rates between 70% and 74%.
“Roughly one in 10 residents in most states say abortion should be illegal in all cases,” the report says. “This belief is most common in Kentucky and North Dakota (both 16%). Additionally, 15% of residents in Montana and South Carolina, 14% of residents in Louisiana and Nebraska, 13% of residents in Alabama and Arkansas, 12% of residents in Idaho and Oklahoma, and 11% of residents in Mississippi, Missouri, and Texas say that abortion should be illegal in all cases.”
Shifts since Dobbs
Deckman said researchers documented significant shifts in attitudes about abortion since the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2022 Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization ruling that ended federal protections for the procedure.
The effects of the ruling are especially evident in the percentage change of Americans who describe abortion as a litmus test issue in supporting politicians, she said.
The share of all Americans who would vote only for a candidate that supports abortion in most or all cases rose from 18% in 2018 to 38% in 2023, PRRI reported. Among Democrats, the increase spiked from 25% to 50%.
Among all Americans opposed to abortion rights in most or all instances, 27% required a candidate to share their views in 2018 compared to 36% who did so last year. The increase was from 34% to 44% among Republicans during that time frame.
“While some proportions of the American population stand at odds with their party’s popular consensus on the legality of abortion, Republicans are more than twice as likely to do so than Democrats. One in 10 Americans (10%) identify as Republican but say abortion should be legal in most or all cases, while 4% identify as Democrats but say abortion should be illegal in most or all cases,” the report says.
Battleground states
The study examined attitudes about abortion rights in red, blue and battleground states. “When asked how abortion might affect their vote, over one-third of residents in red states (36%), battleground states (37%), and blue states (37%) say they will only vote for a candidate who shares their views,” PRRI reports.
In addition, the survey examined support and opposition to abortion rights in states where abortion restrictions have been enacted. Nearly 70% of respondents in the least restrictive states — such as Alaska, Colorado and Vermont — said abortion should be legal in all or most cases, compared to 61% of those in the most restrictive states, including Alabama, Missouri, Tennessee and Texas.
PRRI included questions about Americans’ views on FDA-approved abortion drugs for medical abortions. In response, 68% said they oppose laws restricting abortion pills versus 29% who want them banned or restricted.
“Around seven in 10 of each group oppose abortion pill restrictions, including 72% of those in states that are least restrictive, 69% of those in states that are somewhat restrictive, 68% of those in states that are very restrictive, and 66% of those in states that abortion is completely banned,” the report explains.
Majorities across all religious groups also oppose policies and laws banning access to abortion pills by mail, “but Latter-day Saints (53%) and white evangelical Protestants (51%) are the least likely to oppose such laws.”
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