Survey: Women oppose leaving abortion to the states
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Former President Trump speaks during a press conference at his Mar-a-Lago estate on Aug. 8 in Palm Beach, Fla. Photo: Joe Raedle/Getty Images
Former President Trump tried to avoid taking a hardline abortion stance with his leave-it-to-the-states platform, but a new survey shows resistance from women across the political spectrum.
Why it matters: While Trump tries to downplay abortion as a political issue, 74% of women ages 18–49 said in a KFF survey that they "somewhat" or "strongly" oppose leaving it up to the states to decide whether abortion is legal.
- 3 in 4 women of the same age group say they think it should be legal, per a new survey from KFF.
- That's in stark contrast to Trump's statements that people are happy to have abortion made into a state issue.
By the numbers: 53% of Republican women voters ages 18–49 oppose leaving abortion rights up to the states, compared to 86% of Democratic women, per the survey.
- 73% of independent women voters, a coveted voter bloc for both candidates, also oppose leaving abortion to the states.
- 74% of urban and suburban women oppose leaving abortion rights to the states, and 68% of rural women voters oppose leaving restrictions to the states.
State of play: While majorities of both men and women support legal abortion in most or all cases, women are more likely to rank abortion as a top issue in voting.
- Democrats have been quick to capitalize on Republicans' perceived weakness on the politically potent topic, featuring reproductive rights prominently in ads and campaign speeches.
- Abortion has repeatedly been a winning issue for Democrats, who have won every time abortion has been on the ballot in the post-Roe era.
Zoom out: Abortion is one of the key political topics that is exacerbating the wedge between male and female voters ahead of November.
- The gender gap is likely to be a key dynamic in November as more young men move toward the right and young women move left.
- Harris is the first Black and Asian American woman to lead a major party's presidential ticket.
Between the lines: The number of women getting abortions in the U.S. has surpassed the number of abortions performed before Roe v. Wade was overturned, making the issue all the more personal for women voters.
- "The Dobbs decision has forced people to think more about how they feel about abortion access and whether they support abortion rights," said Usha Ranji, associate director for women's health policy at KFF.
- "It has encouraged people to take stronger stances because they can see that policymakers are pushing so strongly to limit abortion access. "
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