One Year After Dobbs, Abortion Access Is as Important as Ever
By Devi Ruia and Lew Blank
On June 24, 2022, the Supreme Court ruled in the case of Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, overturning Roe v. Wade and eliminating decades of legal precedents protecting abortion rights across the country.
A year later, new Data for Progress polling finds that a majority of voters support progressive legislative and executive action to protect abortion access — and Independent voters align with the Democratic Party over the Republican Party on the issue of abortion by a +15-point margin.
In our survey conducted from June 16-17, 2023, a majority of voters (57 percent) say they think the Supreme Court should have left Roe v. Wade in place, including a majority of Democrats (81 percent) and Independents (58 percent).
When asked which political party most aligns with their views on abortion, 50 percent of voters say they align with the Democratic Party and 41 percent say they align with the Republican Party. By a +15-point margin, Independents align with Democrats (46 percent) over Republicans (31 percent) on the issue of abortion.
Last July, House Democrats responded to the Dobbs decision by attempting to codify Roe v. Wade through the passage of the Women’s Health Protection Act. The bill would reestablish a nationwide right to access abortion in the U.S. and protect physicians who provide abortions. Though the bill failed in the Senate last year, it has been reintroduced in this Congress. When asked if they support or oppose this legislation, a majority of voters (62 percent) say they support it, including 88 percent of Democrats, 64 of Independents, and 38 percent of Republicans.
We find that voters also favor additional executive and legislative actions on reproductive rights proposed by the Congressional Progressive Caucus, including allowing licensed abortion providers to prescribe abortion pills in other states, requiring hospitals that participate in Medicare to provide abortion care, and providing access to abortion on federal land and property in states where abortion has been restricted.
We also tested how the Dobbs decision has impacted different groups across the country. We find that 17 percent of voters either have had more difficulty accessing reproductive healthcare or know someone who has, and these rates are higher among younger voters and voters of color.
Thirty-five percent of voters under 45 have had more difficulty accessing reproductive healthcare or know someone who has, and Latino voters (32 percent) and Black voters (24 percent) are more likely to report the same compared to white voters (15 percent).
Eleven percent of voters have considered moving out of their state or community as a result of anti-abortion legislation, including more than 1 in 5 (21 percent) voters under 45. Additionally, Black and Latino voters have considered moving at higher rates (14 percent and 18 percent, respectively) than white voters (10 percent).
To measure the real-life effects of the Dobbs decision on voters across the United States, we also asked respondents to say in their own words how the decision has impacted them. Below are just a handful of the responses we received:
“It has made me feel less valuable as a human being because I am a female.” — an Independent woman from Oregon
“It has made every woman I know concerned about how far the government will go to restrict a woman's right to have control over her own body or life in general.” — a Democratic woman from Michigan
“I have a cousin who was raped and had to carry to term. The baby was not viable. She was forced to deliver a corpse, one more trauma her body went through courtesy of the Supreme Court and her rapist.” — a Democratic woman from North Carolina
“I want to get sterilized so I will not become pregnant. Pregnant women have very few rights when it comes to health issues.” — a Republican woman from New Hampshire
“Proved to me that my life is invalid.” — an Independent woman from Minnesota
“I no longer feel safe living in states that support the overturn of Roe v. Wade. That decision has already nearly killed people who had medical needs for an abortion.” — an Independent woman from Washington state
“Increased paranoia and avoiding red states, and seriously put the idea of moving to another country out there. It hurt my mental health a lot.” — an Independent woman from Tennessee
One year after Dobbs, it is clear that restrictive abortion laws are already impacting millions of Americans — particularly young people and people of color. A majority of voters believe that Roe v. Wade should have been left in place. To align with the will of voters, legislators should oppose new bans on abortion and champion efforts like the Women’s Health Protection Act that would protect access nationwide.