Most Wisconsin voters want abortion rights protected nationwide, new survey finds
Voters in swing states also broadly oppose criminalizing abortion before fetal viability, according to a recent survey conducted by the University of Maryland.
A majority of voters in six key swing states strongly oppose criminalizing abortion in the early stages of pregnancy, according to a recent survey conducted by the University of Maryland’s Program for Public Consultation.
Respondents in Georgia, Arizona, Nevada, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin said they oppose criminalizing abortion after fetal viability, which is generally considered to be between 22 and 24 weeks of pregnancy.
The survey was conducted as a policymaking simulation, providing participants with briefings and arguments for and against the policies about which they were then asked to respond. Respondents were given a choice of options regarding who should be held liable for either obtaining or providing an abortion and about whether or how severely they should be punished.
Participants were asked whether abortion should be a crime at all stages of pregnancy, after 15 weeks of pregnancy, after 22 to 24 weeks, or at no stage of pregnancy.
In Wisconsin, 53% of Republican survey respondents and 79% of Democratic respondents said they oppose making abortion a crime at any stage of pregnancy. Just 37% of respondents in the state said abortion providers should be charged with a crime, while 71% of respondents opposed charging a patient who obtains an abortion with a crime.
“I think the most striking finding is that you have these big bipartisan majorities agreeing on the core question, which is whether abortion should be criminalized,” said Steven Kull, the director of the University of Maryland’s Program for Public Consultation.
When it came to leaving abortion laws up to the states, 73% of Wisconsin respondents said they preferred a national federal law protecting the procedure. This includes majorities of Republicans in five of the six swing states, except Nevada. Kull said this finding is likely a reaction to the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2022 ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which reversed Roe v. Wade.
Abortion in Wisconsin is legal up to 22 weeks of pregnancy, but there is a long list of restrictions before someone can obtain the procedure. Patients are required to have an ultrasound and must see a physician for in-person counseling, and only physicians can perform an abortion. Additionally, the state bans telehealth for medication abortion services, which must be provided in person. BadgerCare, the state’s Medicaid program, does not cover abortion except in rare cases, such as when the life of the pregnant person is in danger or in cases or sexual assault or incest.
“I think what’s important is that, though there are differences in attitudes about abortion per se … when it comes to the choice about whether or not abortion should be criminalized, there’s actually a remarkable amount of common ground,” Kull said.
