Abortion has passed inflation as the top election issue for women under 30, survey finds

[October 12, 2024]  By GEOFF MULVIHILL

Abortion has passed inflation to become the top issue in the presidential election for women younger than 30 since Vice President Kamala Harris replaced President Joe Biden at the top of the Democratic ticket, according to results released Friday of a survey of female voters by KFF.

About 2 in 5 in the group of young voters said abortion was their top concern in the recent survey, compared with 1 in 5 who ranked it most important in the same survey in the spring.

In the earlier edition, inflation was the top concern for younger voters, as it was for women voters of all ages. Inflation remained the top concern for women in each age group over 30 and for women overall. Women overall ranked abortion as their No. 3 concern, after inflation and threats to democracy, but ahead of immigration.

KFF, a health policy research, polling and news organization, surveyed 678 female voters Sept. 12 through Oct. 1. Most of them were participants in an earlier wave of the same poll, conducted in May and June. The follow-up survey group was supplemented with 29 Black women to ensure an adequate sample size of that group. The sampling error was plus or minus 5 points, with larger ranges for subgroups of voters.
 

Abortion has long been a major issue, but the landscape shifted in 2022 when the U.S. Supreme Court, powered by three justices nominated by Harris' current opponent, former President Donald Trump, overturned Roe v. Wade and opened the door for states to impose abortion bans.

Most Republican-controlled states are now enforcing such bans, including 13 that bar abortions at all stages of pregnancy, with some exceptions, and four with bans that kick in after about the first six weeks of pregnancy — before women often realize they're pregnant.

Harris has been making abortion access a centerpiece of her campaign.

Younger women who responded to the survey and spoke with The Associated Press on Friday have noticed.

Ally Zobel, 19, who describes herself as a left-leaning independent and lives in Woodbridge, Virginia, said that reproductive health is the most important issue for her as she prepares to vote for the first time — and that she appreciates Harris’ calls to restore abortion rights nationally.

She said that she’s concerned about stories of women having health emergencies because they can’t obtain an abortion — and that “pregnancy’s really hard” and that people should not be forced to continue if if they don’t want to.

“As a mom, I don’t want my kids growing up in a world where it’s like that,” she said.

Sydney Wright, a 29-year-old stay-at home mom in Effingham County, Illinois, said Roe v. Wade being overturned propelled the restoration of abortion rights to the top of her list of concerns. And while she's not thrilled with everything about Harris, the Democrat's abortion position is one of the main reasons Wright plans to vote for her.

In this combination image, Democratic vice presidential candidate Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., speaks during a debate, Oct. 7, 2020, in Salt Lake City, left, and Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump speaks during a debate, June 27, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/File)

“I’ve seen people have to travel out of state and come to Illinois for health care,” said Wright, who is not registered with a political party. “I’ve heard of cases where doctors were forced to leave patients to suffer until they were practically dead until they could give them medical care.”

In addition to the presidential race, a number of other elections this year could impact the abortion landscape, including in nine states where there are ballot measures that would protect the right to abortion in the state constitution.

Races for Congress — as well as state offices such as governor, legislators, state supreme court justices and attorneys general — could also help determine abortion policy moving ahead.

Overall, about two-thirds of women said the election will have a major impact on abortion access, up from just over half in the initial survey.

Most women said it is likely Trump would sign a federal law banning abortions after the first 15 weeks of pregnancy if Congress were to pass such a measure. Just as the survey period ended, Trump said he would veto an abortion ban if one reached his desk.

The majority said they believe Harris would sign a law protecting access to abortion nationwide if Congress were to pass that.

There's a deep partisan split over which candidate would be better on abortion access. Most women said they preferred Harris, including 90% of Democrats and fewer than one-fifth of Republicans. The survey found similar dividing lines around which candidate would be better for birth control access and in vitro fertilization.

The survey found that Republican women are slightly less hopeful and enthusiastic, and more anxious and frustrated, about the presidential election than they were earlier this year. By contrast, Democratic women are far more hopeful and enthusiastic, though their anxiousness has also risen.

Like in the spring, a little over half of GOP women are satisfied with their presidential choices. But satisfaction among Democratic women shot up from just over one-third to three-quarters.

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