As the 2020 elections draw near, the issue of abortion rights has found prominence in the US political landscape once more. However, while the topic has traditionally been a point of contention, recent trends suggest that Americans may actually be more supportive of a woman’s right to choose than ever before.
Recent polling from the Pew Research Center shows that a majority of the US public generally supports abortion rights, with 57 percent in favor and 40 percent opposed. This is consistent with previous polling conducted since the landmark Supreme Court ruling, Roe v Wade, which legalized abortion in the US some 47 years ago.
What’s new is that the controversial Supreme Court decision appears to have transformed the very nature of this debate. Longstanding issues of privacy and religion have largely given way to questions of gender equality and autonomy. This shift has been particularly evident in the US elections, where abortion rights have been a campaign winner for some of the most prominent Democrats.
For example, in the 2018 midterms, where Democrats gained more seats in the House of Representatives than in any other election since 1983, more than 80 percent of Democrats voted in favor of legal abortion. In the 2020 Democratic primaries, candidates like Elizabeth Warren have openly voiced their support for abortion rights in a way never seen before, demonstrating a marked shift in how the country perceives the cause.
In the Republican camp, however, the picture hasn’t changed as much. While polling shows that Republican support for legal abortion has slowly risen over the past few decades, the party continues to support stricter abortion restrictions, such as restrictions on federal funding and a ban on late-term abortion.
Ultimately, the story of “abortion rights” is one of continual change and adaptation. Thanks to events like Roe v Wade, which helped to create a more open political climate, citizens in the United States have gradually become more accepting of legal abortion. It’s still too early to tell whether 2020 will mark a further shift in attitudes towards the issue, but it does seem increasingly clear that abortion rights are becoming an increasingly important concern in the minds of most Americans.
As the 2020 elections draw near, the issue of abortion rights has found prominence in the US political landscape once more. However, while the topic has traditionally been a point of contention, recent trends suggest that Americans may actually be more supportive of a woman’s right to choose than ever before.
Recent polling from the Pew Research Center shows that a majority of the US public generally supports abortion rights, with 57 percent in favor and 40 percent opposed. This is consistent with previous polling conducted since the landmark Supreme Court ruling, Roe v Wade, which legalized abortion in the US some 47 years ago.
What’s new is that the controversial Supreme Court decision appears to have transformed the very nature of this debate. Longstanding issues of privacy and religion have largely given way to questions of gender equality and autonomy. This shift has been particularly evident in the US elections, where abortion rights have been a campaign winner for some of the most prominent Democrats.
For example, in the 2018 midterms, where Democrats gained more seats in the House of Representatives than in any other election since 1983, more than 80 percent of Democrats voted in favor of legal abortion. In the 2020 Democratic primaries, candidates like Elizabeth Warren have openly voiced their support for abortion rights in a way never seen before, demonstrating a marked shift in how the country perceives the cause.
In the Republican camp, however, the picture hasn’t changed as much. While polling shows that Republican support for legal abortion has slowly risen over the past few decades, the party continues to support stricter abortion restrictions, such as restrictions on federal funding and a ban on late-term abortion.
Ultimately, the story of “abortion rights” is one of continual change and adaptation. Thanks to events like Roe v Wade, which helped to create a more open political climate, citizens in the United States have gradually become more accepting of legal abortion. It’s still too early to tell whether 2020 will mark a further shift in attitudes towards the issue, but it does seem increasingly clear that abortion rights are becoming an increasingly important concern in the minds of most Americans.
