A record high of 69% of U.S. adults are dissatisfied with abortion laws––the highest percentage since 2001, according to a recent Gallup poll.
Of these Americans who are dissatisfied, 46% want less strict laws. According to Gallup, that’s a “16-percentage-point jump in this sentiment since January 2022.” Another 15% said they want stricter abortion laws, while 8% were dissatisfied but wanted no changes in abortion laws.
Last year, a record low of 24% of Americans were satisfied with abortion laws, compared to 26% in the latest Gallup poll.
Historically, this is a big change from the average percentage of Americans dissatisfied with abortion laws in the United States.
“Between 2001 and 2021, the percentage of Americans dissatisfied with U.S. abortion policies ranged from 43% (in 2002 and 2008) to 58% (in 2020),” Gallup reported.
However, compared to the latest poll, Americans who were dissatisfied with abortion laws in the past typically didn’t think abortion laws were strong enough rather than too strict. That has since switched after the Supreme Court effectively overturned Roe v. Wade in June 2022. The latest poll, conducted between Jan. 2-22, 2023, reflects the public’s reaction to the major policy shift last year.
“Dissatisfaction with abortion laws increased in 2022, even as it switched to being driven more by a desire for the laws to be less strict,” Gallup stated. “This shift likely reflects two events in late 2021 -- when the U.S. Supreme Court allowed a restrictive Texas abortion law to stand and when the conservative-leaning high court heard oral arguments in the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization case challenging the constitutionality of abortion.”
In particular, Democrats’ dissatisfaction in abortion laws shifted dramatically in 2022. Between 2001 and 2021, Democrats were much more likely than Republicans to express satisfaction with abortion laws. Among both parties, record percentages are now dissatisfied and call for less strict abortion laws. Among Democrats, 74% are dissatisfied––up 31 points in one year. Another 44% of Independents are dissatisfied, up 13 points from the year prior. Republicans were statistically unchanged and far lower, at 17%.
“Republicans are currently three times as likely as Democrats to express satisfaction with the nation’s abortion policies, 39% versus 13%,” the poll said.
Half of women are dissatisfied with U.S. abortion policies and support less strict laws compared to 41% of men, and “both readings are the highest on record for those groups,” according to Gallup.
The abortion issue in the U.S. has been flipped on its head since the Supreme Court’s monumental decision in 2022, impacting elections across the country as more Americans feel dissatisfied with the current abortion laws.
Amy joined TriMed Media as a Senior Writer for HealthExec after covering home care for three years. When not writing about all things healthcare, she fulfills her lifelong dream of becoming a pirate by sailing in regattas and enjoying rum. Fun fact: she sailed 333 miles across Lake Michigan in the Chicago Yacht Club "Race to Mackinac."