The latest Harvard Center for American Political Studies and Harris poll revealed that a majority of American voters believe that abortions should be legal up until the first trimester, or only in cases of incest and rape. Far fewer participants believe that women should be able to have an abortion during the third trimester, or up until the moment of birth.
The poll, conducted online within the United States from May 29-30, 2019 among 1,295 registered voters, found that 41% of voters believe abortion should only be allowed in cases of incest and rape. 29% believe that abortion should be legal up until the first trimester.
The survey also found that just 6% of Americans believe abortion should be the allowed until the moment of birth, 8% of Americans believe it should be allowed in the third trimester, and 17% believe that it should be allowed in the second.
When asked whether or not a doctor and mother should be permitted to kill a baby born with deformities, a majority of 70% said the doctor and mother should not be allowed to kill the baby post birth.
The poll also found that most Americans want the Supreme Court to overturn or modify Roe v. Wade. 20% believe the High Court should overturn it, while 49% said it should modify the ruling. 31% believe Roe v. Wade should be affirmed.
When asked, "Do you think our current abortion laws are too liberal, too restrictive or just right?," respondents were more evenly split. 29% believe that the current laws were too liberal, 37% believe they were too restrictive, and 34% believe that the current laws were just right.
This polling comes as several states have passed pro-life laws in recent weeks which limit abortions to when a heartbeat is detected in the baby or at the moment of conception, drawing the ire of pro-abortion Democrats and 2020 presidential contenders.