On the evening of May 2, a leaked draft opinion from the Supreme Court case Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization was published by Politico. The opinion showed the Justices posed to overturn the landmark case Roe v. Wade, which legalized abortion in all 50 states in 1973. A new poll published this week asked Americans for their views on abortion, including if they identify as "pro-choice" or "pro-life."
A Gallup poll published Thursday that was conducted after the leak of the draft opinion from the Supreme Court found that a near-record high number of Americans identify as "pro-choice."
The poll found that 55 percent of Americans identify as "pro-choice." In 1995, the poll found that 56 percent of Americans were "pro-choice," the highest statistic Gallup ever recorded.
The poll found that a majority of Americans (52 percent) consider abortion to be "morally acceptable," while a record-low of Americans (38 percent) call it morally wrong.
The increase in pro-choice identification over the past year is mainly driven by Democrats; 88%, up from 70% last year, consider themselves pro-choice.
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The poll also shows significant increases in pro-choice identification among Democratic-leaning groups, including younger adults and women. Pro-choice identification increased by nine percentage points to 61% among women, 12 points to 67% among adults aged 18 to 34 and nine points to 58% among adults aged 35 to 54. The percentage "pro-choice" did not change significantly among Republicans, independents, men, or older Americans.
The poll, conducted from May 2 to May 22, included 1,007 American adults. The poll started just hours before the SCOTUS draft opinion was leaked and published.
Dobbs surrounds a 15-week abortion ban in Mississippi. The opinion was written by Justice Samuel Alito and argued that Mississippi's law should stand and that Roe was wrongly decided and should be overturned.
The final decision is expected this summer.
