Most Americans would take candidates’ abortion policies into consideration before voting: poll

Most Americans in a new poll said they would take candidates’ abortion policies into consideration before voting them into public office.

The new CNN poll released on Tuesday found that 55 percent of U.S. adults would consider a candidate’s position on abortion as one of several important factors when voting, while 29 percent said they would only vote for a candidate who shares their views on abortion.

Another 16 percent said they do not see abortion as a major issue that would affect how they cast their ballot, according to the poll. 

The survey also found that Americans hold largely the same views on the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade as they did shortly after the ruling came down last June.

While 36 percent in Tuesday’s poll said they approved of the high court’s decision that the Constitution does not confer a right to abortion, 64 percent said they disapproved. Half of those polled said they strongly disapproved of the decision, while 23 percent said they strongly approved.

Among those who approve of the overturning of Roe v. Wade, 66 percent said they believe that politicians who oppose abortion should leave decisions about abortion restrictions up to the states. Another 34 percent said politicians should push for further restrictions nationwide.

While the majority still favor leaving the issue up to the states, this represents a decrease from last July, when 80 percent said politicians should let states decide on abortion restrictions.

Among those who disapprove of the Supreme Court’s decision, 60 percent said their state government is not doing enough to ensure access to abortion and 78 percent said the same of the federal government.

The CNN poll was conducted by SSRS from July 1-31 with 1,279 U.S. adults and had a margin of error of 3.7 percentage points.