More Americans Than Ever Oppose Overturning Roe v. Wade

Vice President-elect Mike Pence has said he would like to see Roe v. Wade ― the seminal 1973 Supreme Court ruling that affirmed a woman’s right to get an abortion in the United States ― sent to the “ash heap of history.”

President-elect Donald Trump ― a man who has held a dizzying number of stances on abortion ― seems, at best, ambivalent about Roe, saying women would simply have to “go to another state” to get an abortion if it became illegal where they lived.

Yet a new survey from the Pew Research Center published this week suggests the views of the incoming administration are vastly out-of-step with those held by the majority of their constituents.

Nearly 70 percent of Americans oppose overturning Roe v. Wade, Pew found, up from 63 percent four years ago.

According to the survey, support for upholding Roe v. Wade is higher among Democrats (84 percent) than Republicans (53 percent).

That partisan gap has increased since the 2013 survey, as more Democrats have thrown their support behind the ruling, while opinions among Republicans has remained largely the same.

The survey also revealed differences based on religious views (people with no religious affiliation were most supportive of upholding Roe v. Wade, while white Evangelical Christians were split nearly 50-50, for example); age (younger Americans were more likely to support Roe v. Wade than older generations) and education (higher levels of education were linked to greater support for Roe v. Wade).

But overall, the prevailing message was clear: Most Americans support upholding Roe v. Wade. Listen up, Pence and Trump.