New Pew Poll: Pro-Life Americans Growing in Numbers and Convictions, More Support Abortion Restrictions

Washington, D.C. – Today the Pew Research Center for People and the Press released a nationwide poll showing an expansion of pro-life attitudes in America.

“Add today’s Pew poll results to the growing pile of evidence that the pro-life position has become the majority position in America,” said Marjorie Dannenfelser, President of the Susan B. Anthony List. “As President Obama and his allies in Congress continue to push a radical abortion agenda through health care reform, Americans across the board are waking up and realizing: this is not representation. The politically correct language of ‘choice’ is worn out. This growing intensity amongst pro-lifers should send a clear message to Washington—start representing your constituents, because the Life issue is not going to shrink away.”

The Pew Poll results indicate that since 2007, support for abortion has declined across most demographic and political groups. Among liberals, the abortion debate has receded in importance; however, amongst conservatives support for the pro-life cause has grown in importance. According to Pew, there is no single reason for shifts in opinion but the organization attributes the timing of the change to the recent election of President Obama. Key Findings include:

· In the past year, the percentage of Americans in favor of making abortion “illegal in all/most cases” increased four percentage points, from 41% to 45%. For the same time frame, the percentage of Americans in favor of making abortion “legal in all/most cases” declined by seven percentage points, from 54% to 47%.

· 41% of Americans favor making abortions more difficult to obtain, a 6% increase since January 2007. This is the highest level of support for abortion restrictions since Pew began polling on the issue in 1987.

· 76% of Americans support parental consent requirements for minors obtaining abortions. 19% oppose such restrictions. Even among those who say abortion should be legal in all or most cases, 71% favor requiring parental consent.

“GOP leaders across the nation should take note of this week’s poll, and all the evidence leading up to it that show the pro-life position is gaining, and could strengthen the Republican Party if they would only pay attention.” said Susan B. Anthony List President Marjorie Dannenfelser. “Despite the trends in public opposition to abortion on-demand, the GOP continues to nominate leaders who don’t believe in the importance of defending life. It’s long past time to abandon this misguided strategy, which is being perpetuated with the recent GOP nomination of Dede Scozzafava for New York’s 23^rd congressional district. This disconnect is why the Susan B. Anthony List Candidate Fund recently endorsed Doug Hoffman – the lone pro-lifer – in the special election to succeed Rep. John McHugh.”

The Pew findings echo several other surveys taken in 2009 which support the notion of growing pro-life attitudes in America. In April, Pew found that the overall support for abortion was down by 8% amongst all Americans, particularly among Republicans and Independents. In May, Gallup released its Annual Values and Beliefs Survey, showing that 51% of Americans considered themselves pro-life; a majority for the first time since Gallup began polling the abortion issue. With regards to health care, both Public Opinion Strategies on behalf of the Susan B. Anthony List, and Rasmussen Reports found abortion to be a losing issue for congressional Democrats and President Obama.

The Susan B. Anthony List is a nationwide network of Americans, over 162,000 residing in all 50 states, dedicated to mobilizing, advancing, and representing pro-life women in politics. Its connected Candidate Fund increases the percentage of pro-life women in the political process.

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