Poll: More Americans support legalizing abortion in most cases than did a year ago

A March Pew Research Center poll shows that 54 percent of Americans surveyed support the right to a legal abortion in all or most cases. About 42 percent of those surveyed are in favor of criminalizing the procedure in all or most cases.

With the increasing trend of state legislatures imposing more restrictions on abortion — in some instances criminalizing the practice after 20 weeks — and many anti-abortion rights groups in the debate increasingly appealing to a younger demographic with an uptick in social-media-savvy, youth-led initiatives, the findings on the surface might appear surprising.

In 2009, Pew Research polling showed that 46 percent of Americans favored legal abortions in most or all cases, compared to 44 percent against — a pretty even split. In the summer of 2010, the field was more divided, with pro-abortion rights supporters tilting the balance in their favor with 50 percent versus 44 percent opposed to legalizing abortion in or all in most cases.

Unsurprisingly, the divide tends to run along party lines — 65 percent of Democrats favoring legal abortion versus 34 percent of Republicans against abortion. About 58 percent of independents said they favored legal abortion in all or most cases, according to the Pew survey.

Among Catholics, support for legal abortions has increased slightly: 52 percent, compared with 47 percent in 2010. Evangelical Protestants, at 64 percent, continue to the be the most opposed to legalized abortion than any other religious group.

Last year, a Gallup Poll showed that the views on abortion were shifting to the anti-abortion-rights side, with data demonstrating that 47 percent of Americans identified themselves as “pro-life” vs. 45 percent who identified as “pro-choice.” Notably, the Gallup Poll found that ideology among the 18-29 set had increased toward pro-choice, from 42 percent in 2007-2008 to 47 percent in 2009-2010.