Washington — In its first abortion decision since the historic overturning of Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court voted unanimously last week to reject a lawsuit aimed at restricting access to the abortion pill. As news of the lawsuit and the ruling have spread, headlines and political commentary depicted the topic to have two opposing sides with minimal common ground and insurmountable differences of opinion. But polling on public opinion presents a different narrative.
According to a poll by RMG Research, 73% of people say that abortion is difficult because two lives are involved. “It’s a great example of how the political process makes something pretty divisive,” says pollster and analyst Scott Rasmussen. “They only talk about one side of this even though everybody knows there are two lives involved.”
That said, 63% of people who took the poll think it’s important to protect a woman’s right to choose, but that choice should be made early in pregnancy. For many, the debate over how early is where the pro-life dilemma begins. The 15-week abortion ban has voter support on both sides of the issue. However, because 91% of abortions take place prior to 15 weeks, these bans are not effective at reducing the majority of abortions.
By a 3-to-1 margin, voters think fewer abortions are better for America.
"What we want is fewer abortions. It is not a debate about what is the perfect law or how can we make this law more effective," says Rasmussen.
Additionally, polling found that only 28% of Americans believe that stricter laws will significantly reduce the number of abortions.
"This applies to Republicans and Democrats," says Rasmussen. "People recognize it’s a cultural issue, rather than a legal issue."
Sixty-one percent of people polled would favor a government program that encourages women in difficult situations to give birth rather than have an abortion. And 79% believe if a man gets a woman pregnant, he should be financially responsible for the mother and child during pregnancy.
Illustrating that while there are differences of perspective, there is also a considerable amount of common ground on the issue.
"The American people are less divided in their daily lives than they are in the political world, and there’s no better example of this than the abortion issue," shares Rasmussen.
Crystal Brockington
