Yesterday’s Gallup poll on abortion had most of the media focus on the fact that the number of Americans declaring themselves “pro-choice” had fallen to a record low. But the poll also offered more good news for the pro-life side — most Americans want most abortions made illegal.
The Gallup survey indicated fifty-nine percent of Americans say abortion should be illegal in most or all circumstances. The poll found 39 percent said abortion should be legal only in a few circumstances and 20 percent said it should be illegal in all circumstances, for a total of 59 percent who want all or most abortions illegal.
By contrast, 25 percent said abortion should be legal in all circumstances and 13 percent said it should be legal in most circumstances. That’s a mere 38 percent, less than four in ten Americans, who say all or most abortions should remain legal.
CNS News indicates these numbers are an improvement over previous years:
In a survey conducted Sept. 6-7, 1994, 33 percent said abortion should be legal in all circumstances and 13 percent said it should be legal in most circumstances—making a total of 46 percent who said all or most abortions should be legal.
In that same 1994 poll, 38 percent said abortion should be legal only in a few circumstances and 13 percent said it should be illegal in all circumstances—making a majority of 51 percent who said abortion should be illegal in most or all circumstances.
The Gallup survey is not an anomaly, as numerous recent polls have shown a majority of Americans want all or most abortions made illegal.
A January national survey conducted by the Marist Institute and commissioned by the Knights of Columbus finds 79 percent of Americans say that they would not allow abortion after the first three months of pregnancy. Another 51 percent would only allow abortion – at most – in cases of rape, incest, or to save the life of the mother – or would not allow it at all.
That second number is a positive one showing more than half of Americans take a pro-life position on abortion saying they want all or almost all abortions to not be permitted. Breaking down the figure further, 11 percent say abortion should never be permitted under any circumstance, 9 percent say abortion should be allowed only to save the life of the mother and 31% opposed permitting 98% of all abortions by saying abortion should be allowed only in cases of rape, incest or to save the life of the mother. (click right to enlarge image)
Just 12 percent agree with pro-abortion President Barack Obama saying “abortion should be available to a woman any time she wants one during her entire pregnancy.”
A September CNN national poll of Americans found results that are almost identical, showing 62% of Americans want all or most abortions made illegal.
CNN asked the question, “Do you think abortion should be legal under any circumstances, legal under only certain circumstances, or illegal in all circumstances?” The survey found 25 percent of Americans want all abortions legal while 21 percent want all abortions illegal, and it had a large group of 53 percent of Americans saying abortions should be legal only under certain circumstances.
However, with a large percentage of Americans opposing abortions except in cases such as taking of the life of the mother, or cases of rape or incest — both of which, combined, constitute less than two percent of all abortions in the nation, according to the Guttmacher Institute — most Americans truly want 100% of 98 percent of the 1.2 million abortions a year made illegal.
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A follow-up question CNN asked showed that to be the case.
When asked, “Do you think abortion should be legal under any circumstances, legal under only certain circumstances, legal in a few circumstances or illegal in all circumstances? ” CNN found the same 25 percent and 21 percent want either all abortions legal or all illegal. But, breaking down that 53 percent group further, CNN shows just 12 percent want abortions legal in most circumstances while 41 percent want most abortions to be made illegal.
In total, 62 percent of Americans want all or most abortions to be prohibited while only 37 percent of Americans want all or most abortions kept legal — the position of President Barack Obama and Planned Parenthood, the nation’s biggest abortion business.
Exit polling data during the 2012 Republican presidential primaries also showed a majority of Republicans in most states want all or most abortions made illegal.
