Slight Majority Of U.S. Residents Call Themselves 'Pro-life;' 76% Say Abortion Should Be Legal, Poll Shows

Main Category: Abortion
Also Included In: Women's Health / Gynecology
Article Date: 19 May 2009 - 4:00 PDT

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Seventy-six percent of U.S. residents believe that abortion should be legal, a finding in keeping with public opinion over the past three decades, according to a Gallup poll released on Saturday, the AP/Boston Globe reports (AP/Boston Globe, 5/16). However, 51% of respondents identified themselves as "pro-life," while 42% said they are "pro-choice" (Gallup poll, 5/16). The finding marks the first time since Gallup began asking about abortion rights in 1995 that a majority of respondents said they consider themselves "pro-life" (Nadeau, Boston Herald, 5/16). Last year's poll showed that 50% of respondents consider themselves "pro-choice," compared with 44% who said they are "pro-life" (Abcarian, Los Angeles Times, 5/16).

The new poll found that 53% of respondents believe abortion should be legal under some circumstances, 23% believe it should be legal under any circumstances and 22% believe it should be illegal under any circumstances (Boston Herald, 5/16). The percentage of respondents who oppose abortion rights in all cases rose slightly from last year, while those who support abortion rights in all cases decreased slightly. The Los Angeles Times reports that the percentage of respondents who oppose abortion rights in all circumstances and those who support abortion rights in all circumstances is "a virtual tie." The results have a margin of sampling error of plus or minus three percentage points.

Respondents who labeled themselves as moderates and Republicans accounted for most of the change in views compared with past polls, as Democrats' views remained consistent with previous years, according to the Los Angeles Times. Gallup in its analysis wrote that it is "possible" that President Obama "has pushed the public's understanding of what it means to be 'pro-choice' slightly to the left, politically" (Los Angeles Times, 5/16). The survey was conducted between May 7 and May 10 (AP/Boston Globe, 5/16).

Nancy Keenan, president of NARAL Pro-Choice America, said, "I am pretty confident that Americans really don't want Roe v. Wade overturned." She added that the increase in respondents identifying as "pro-life" does not "square with what has happened in the last several elections," noting that voters have rejected several antiabortion-rights ballot measures in South Dakota, California, Oregon and Colorado since 2005. However, Charmaine Yoest, president of Americans United for Life, said, "It tracks pretty much with what we've always known: People generally are pro-life depending on how you ask the question" (Los Angeles Times, 5/16).

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