The number of Americans who identify as pro-choice has almost hit the highest point on record, after a leak of the Supreme Court’s draft opinion that shows five justices are expected to rescind a woman’s constitutional right to abortion. And the number of Americans who say they are “pro-life” – opposed to abortion and do not support a woman’s right to choose – has dropped to its lowest point since 1996.
A new Gallup poll taken “mostly after” the leak shows a “marked” increase in people who now say they are pro-choice – supportive of a woman’s right to choose to have an abortion. A majority of Americans, now 55%, say they are pro-choice, just one point below the all-time high of 56% in 1995.
“After a decade in which Americans’ identification as ‘pro-choice’ varied narrowly between 45% and 50%, the percentage has jumped six points to 55% in the latest poll, compared with the prior measure a year ago,” Gallup reports.
The polling organization also says that for the first time “a majority of Americans (52%) consider abortion morally acceptable, while a record-low 38% call it morally wrong.”
The Supreme Court is widely expected this month to hand down a ruling overturning the 1973 landmark decision in Roe v. Wade, which found women have a right to abortion. That decision is also expected by some legal experts to pave the way for the 6-3 majority conservative court to overturn other decisions, including the 2015 Obergefell ruling which found same-sex couples have a constitutional right to marry, and the 2003 decision in Lawrence v Texas which found a right to sex between consenting adults, including same-sex sex.