Despite claims from corporate media that most Americans oppose the overturning of Roe v. Wade, more Americans actually believe states should decide abortion laws and some would support a national ban.
Following the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe, 46 percent of Americans say Congress should pass national law allowing abortions. However, 44 percent say states should decide, and seven percent would support a national ban, a new Monmouth University poll found. These high percentages in favor of states’ rights are in direct conflict with the fact that 60 percent of those same respondents disapprove of overturning Roe, compared to 37 percent who approve.
The contradiction shows what other pollsters have revealed: many Americans are unaware of what the Supreme Court’s 1973 Roe v. Wade decision entails. A May poll from the University of Massachusetts Amherst showed that one quarter of Americans falsely believe overturning Roe would make abortion illegal nationwide.
Notably, the Monmouth poll phrased the question: “The Roe versus Wade decision, which has guided abortion law in the United States since 1973, was overturned by the Supreme Court on Friday. Do you approve or disapprove of the court overturning Roe?” The wording did not explain that Roe invented a constitutional right to abortion up to the moment of birth, and that overturning it would return the issue of abortion laws back to states legislatures. The demographics of the poll are comprised of 25 percent Republicans, 30 percent Democrats, and 45 percent independents. The poll also refers to unborn babies as “fetuses.”
Furthermore, the Monmouth University poll shows that Democrats’ push for abortion on demand through all nine months of pregnancy is incongruent with how Americans view the unborn.
While 66 percent of voters believe a woman has more rights than an “unborn fetus” (23 percent) in the first trimester, the unborn child’s rights trump that of the mothers in the second and third trimesters. In the second trimester 44 percent believe the woman has more rights and 46 believe the baby has more rights. That percentage escalates in the last trimester, with 53 percent of Americans saying the unborn baby has more rights, compared to 37 percent for the mother.
Unsurprisingly, 80 percent of Democrat respondents want a national law allowing abortion. Sixty-nine percent of Republicans want abortion laws left to the states. Democrats also seem to be convinced by online misinformation that the Roe decision means the Supreme Court could also overturn legalized same-sex marriage. Eighty-three percent of Democrats and 38 percent of Republicans feel gay marriage is “somewhat likely” to be reversed now that Roe has been overturned.
Democrats and corporate media have already begun to use the Supreme Court’s decision to rally their base ahead of the November midterms. But despite the ruling, poll after poll shows more Americans are occupied with the dire state of the economy, overseen by Democrats and President Joe Biden.
The Monmouth University poll likewise shows that only 3 out of 10 Americans say the overturning of Roe would “personally impact them or their family.” Only 13 percent say the decision impacts the “a great deal,” and 17 percent say some. In stark contrast, 50 percent say “they will not be impacted,” and 18 percent “do not expect much impact.”
The Monmouth University Poll was conducted between June 24-27 with 747 U.S. adults. the margin of error is ±3.6 percentage points.