The Popularity of Abortion Rights Ballot Measures

November 27, 2024

Earlier this month, Donald J. Trump won the presidential election. But so did seven ballot measures protecting abortion rights in Arizona, Colorado, Maryland, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, and New York. (Florida’s measure nearly scraped by, winning a whopping 57 percent of votes, but it still fell short of the absurdly high 60 percent “supermajority” threshold to pass a referendum in the Sunshine State.)

These wins – especially amidst such a large, devastating loss – are undoubtedly a good thing. They further confirm what we’ve long known to be true: U.S. public opinion on abortion is largely pro-choice. Interestingly, the 2024 election demonstrates that many conservative voters are part of this majority pro-choice contingent. In the words of Liz Hamel, director of Public Opinion and Survey Research for health policy organization KFF, the data shows that “lots of people who voted in favor of abortion access […] still voted for Donald Trump.”

This split-vote phenomenon offers insight that we hope liberals and progressives will heed when navigating our political landscape (read: hellscape). Conservatives might be pro-choice, or at least willing to support abortion rights ballot measures. That doesn’t mean that they feel so strongly about abortion rights that they would vote for liberal or progressive candidates.

As we look ahead into what we anticipate will be a dark four years of human rights violations in the U.S., we at the Woodhull Freedom Foundation know that these measures will materially improve the lives of scores of people across the country. We are profoundly happy that seven states have restored, protected, or expanded abortion rights. We also know that there are many lessons from the election, and we are cautiously hopeful that candidates who support human rights and decency are ready to learn.