(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Many adults in the United States believe pregnancy termination should remain legal, according to a poll by TNS released by the Washington Post and ABC News. 53 per cent of respondents would allow abortion in all or most cases, while 44 per cent believe the procedure should be illegal in all or most occasions.
The 1973 Supreme Court ruling gave American women the right to an abortion in the first trimester of pregnancy, and regulated the procedure during the second trimester "in ways that are reasonably related to maternal health." In the third trimester, a state can choose to proscribe abortion, except when necessary "for the preservation of the life or health of the mother."
In his campaign website, Arizona senator John McCain—the presumptive presidential nominee for the Republican Party in this year’s United States election—discusses his views on abortion, stating, "John McCain believes Roe v. Wade is a flawed decision that must be overturned, and as president he will nominate judges who understand that courts should not be in the business of legislating from the bench."
Polling Data
Do you think abortion should be legal in all cases, legal in most cases, illegal in most cases or illegal in all cases?
Jun. 2008
Dec. 2007
Nov. 2007
Legal in all cases
18%
18%
19%
Legal in most cases
35%
35%
36%
Illegal in most cases
28%
27%
27%
Illegal in all cases
16%
17%
16%
No opinion
3%
3%
2%
Source: TNS / Washington Post / ABC News
Methodology: Telephone interviews with 1,125 American adults, conducted from Jun. 12 to Jun. 15, 2008. Margin of error is 3 per cent.
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