The hundreds of thousands of pro-life Americans who converged on Washington today for the 45th annual march for life have a lot to celebrate as a new poll reveals that nearly a strong majority of Americans are now in favor of stricter limits on abortion.
The Knights of Columbus, who commissioned the poll, is reporting that of the 2,617 people polled in December and January, 76 percent said they wanted to see abortion limited to the first three months of pregnancy.
This support for limitations cut across all political lines with 92 percent or Republicans, 61 percent of Democrats and 78 percent of Independents saying they favor restrictions.
The poll also found that even though a slim majority of Americans (51%) identify as “pro-choice,” 60 percent of them also support substantial limits on the procedure.
On specific policy issues, the poll also found that more than 6 in 10 Americans (63 percent) would ban abortion after 20 weeks of pregnancy, while a similar number oppose using tax dollars to pay for abortion (60 percent).
This bodes well for passage of the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act which has already passed the House and is awaiting a vote in the Senate. President Trump has promised to sign it. Lawmakers who have been trying to codify the Hyde Amendment, which forbids the use of taxpayer money to fund abortion, will also be buoyed by this strong public support.
The poll found that a majority of Americans continue to consider abortion “morally wrong” (56 percent). That number grows to almost two-thirds (64 percent) for abortions sought in the cases of unborn children with genetic issues like Down syndrome.
By more than 15 percentage points, a majority of Americans say that medical professionals and organizations with moral objections should not be forced to perform or provide insurance coverage for abortion.
The fact that women are hurt by abortion is finally starting to register on the American public with 52 percent of respondents saying abortion does a woman more harm than good in the long run. Only 29 percent disagreed.
Lawmakers up for election in 2018 will also be interested to know that about 4 in 10 Americans say abortion is a “major factor” in how they’ll vote in presidential (42 percent), congressional (45 percent), and local (38 percent) elections.
“It is hardly surprising that after 50 million abortions in this country, an overwhelming majority of the American people want substantial limits,” said Knights of Columbus CEO Carl Anderson.
“This survey shows clearly that the ‘pro-choice’ label can no longer be assumed to mean support for abortion on demand. Nor can abortion be thought of as a partisan issue since majorities of Democrats, Independents and Republicans all agree that it should be substantially restricted. It is high time that our political debates reflected this national consensus and used it as a starting point.”
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