More Than Half of Republicans Support Roe v. Wade
There are few issues more divisive in the United States than those surrounding abortion rights. And while there is no doubt that the debate is not going to be definitively settled anytime soon—especially with a Supreme Court seat currently open—a new poll shows that perhaps Americans aren’t as far apart on the matter as it might seem at first glance (even when it comes to party lines).
The NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll finds that 71 percent of American voters believe that Roe v. Wade—the Supreme Court ruling that gave women the legal right to an abortion—should not be overturned.
According to NBC News, that’s the highest level of support registered for the decision (and the lowest percentage of opposition at just 23 percent) in the poll’s history, which goes back to 2005. In 1989, a Gallup survey showed that 58 percent said they believed it should stay in place while 31 percent disagreed.
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Any way you look at it, that’s a pretty solid majority. But it’s also interesting to note that the poll found that 52 percent of Republican voters also support Roe v. Wade and do not believe that it should be overturned—compared to 88 percent of Democrats and 76 percent of independents.
This level of support for Roe v. Wade obviously comes at an interesting time, when many are rightfully concerned about what President Trump’s conservative Supreme Court nominee, Brett Kavanaugh, might mean for a woman’s right to choose. In fact, the NBC News/WSJ poll also showed that support for Kavanaugh is much lower than past nominees at this point in the pre-confirmation process.
Voters also said that they are more likely to vote for a candidate who supports abortion rights versus one who opposes them. And as one Twitter user pointed out, “More support for Roe than ever before. Including a majority of Republicans. Presumably some of them live in Alaska and Maine.” That’s an apparent nod to pro-choice Republican Senators Lisa Murkowski and Susan Collins, who could be swing votes in the Kavanaugh nomination.
While the NBC News/WSJ poll didn’t break down the numbers across gender, a recent study from the Kaiser Family Foundation showed that 65 percent of men and 68 percent of women support the ruling.
Those the numbers jump even higher among women of ages 18-44, where 74 percent want to see Roe v. Wade upheld.