Highly Religious Voters Oppose Overturning Roe v. Wade
By Natasha Chisholm
When the Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade in June 2022, ending federal protections for abortion, the decision reverberated around the country. It marked a turning point in a decades-long fight waged by anti-abortion, “pro-life” advocates who have organized across the country to restrict access to safe and legal abortion. Many pro-life groups advocating against abortion are composed of Christian conservatives and cite their religious faith as the basis of their opposition to abortion. However, a large number of Americans view abortion as a matter of healthcare, prioritizing the health, safety, and choice of parents.
Data for Progress polling throughout 2022 consistently found that a majority of likely voters support the right to an abortion. Our recent polling explores the relationship between religious identity and voter attitudes toward abortion among a predominantly Christian sample and finds that even voters who identify as highly religious oppose the decision to overturn Roe v. Wade. These voters also recognize the importance of personal freedom in the face of government oversight.
Among voters who identify as religious, more than three-quarters (77 percent) respond that religion is “very important” or “somewhat important” to them.
We also examined the attitudes of religious voters to understand how they are reacting to the Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade. A majority of these voters who identify religion as very or somewhat important to them (51 percent) believe the Supreme Court should have left Roe v. Wade in place.
Additionally, more than half of evangelicals (56 percent), nearly two-thirds of voters who view religion as important (64 percent), and half of voters who regularly attend religious services (51 percent) agree that the government should not interfere in personal matters like reproductive rights and that families and individuals should have control over their reproductive decisions.
Access to abortion is under attack across the country. While Republicans continue to use religion as justification for dangerous bans and restrictions at the local, state, and federal levels, these findings make clear that people of faith are not a monolith. Legislators must approach abortion as a secular health issue that will safeguard bodily autonomy and protect privacy in medical decisions.
Natasha Chisholm is a former political intern at Data for Progress.
Survey Methodology
From February 16 to 21, 2023, Data for Progress conducted a survey of 1,199 likely voters nationally using web panel respondents. The sample was weighted to be representative of likely voters by age, gender, education, race, geography, and voting history. The survey was conducted in English. The margin of error is ±3 percentage points. Religious importance and frequency of attendance were asked of 972 likely voters who identify with a religion.