Only 8% of Americans say abortion should be illegal in all cases

WASHINGTON (April 23, 2026)—Six in ten Americans (61%) say abortion should be legal in most or all cases, according to a new survey report published today by PRRI. Based on interviews with more than 22,000 adults conducted throughout 2025 as part of the PRRI American Values Atlas, while 36% of Americans say abortion should be illegal in most or all cases, the share of Americans who say abortion should be illegal in all cases has dropped by half since 2010, from 15% to 8% in 2025.

Independents’ views on abortion legality are closer to Democrats than Republicans, with 65% agreeing abortion should be legal in most or all cases. Most Democrats have consistently favored abortion rights, with support increasing from 71% in 2010 to 86% in 2025. In contrast, only 38% of Republicans support abortion legality, slightly higher than in 2010 (35%). Among Republicans, 13% say abortion should be illegal in all cases, compared with 6% of independents and 3% of Democrats.

“Our new 50-state survey report finds that banning abortion access does not appeal to most Americans, including large majorities of independents,” said Melissa Deckman, Ph.D., CEO of PRRI. “Among those Americans who do oppose abortion legality, however, we find stronger support for pronatalist, patriarchal, and traditional gender views.”

While majorities across most religious traditions say that abortion should be legal in all or most cases, four major religious groups lack majority support for abortion legality: Hispanic Protestants (40%), Latter-day Saints (31%), white evangelical Protestants (27%), and Jehovah’s Witnesses (21%). Majorities of some of the largest religious groups in America, including 57% of white Catholics, 62% of Hispanic Catholics, 65% of white mainline/non-evangelical Protestants, and 70% of Black Protestants, support abortion legality in all or most cases.

Americans who qualify as Christian nationalism Rejecters (93%) are more likely than Skeptics (66%), Sympathizers (37%), and Adherents (22%) to support the legality of abortion.

Support for abortion legality has increased among those who seldom or never attend religious services. Americans who seldom or never attend religious services (76%) are more likely than those who attend services monthly or a few times a year (61%) and those who attend services weekly or more (32%) to support abortion legality. While support for abortion legality has remained steady among church attenders, it has risen among those who seldom or never attend services since 2010, when 72% supported abortion legality.

A majority of residents in most states and the District of Columbia say that abortion should be legal; few seek limits on abortion access in all or most cases. Fewer than one in five residents of any state say abortion should be illegal in all cases.

Abortion legality opponents are more likely than abortion legality supporters to hold pronatalist, patriarchal, and traditional gender views.

More than half of abortion legality opponents favor policies that encourage more Americans to have children (55%), compared with one-third of abortion legality supporters (34%). Opposition to abortion legality is also strongly linked to views about masculinity: 63% of abortion legality opponents agree society as a whole has become too soft and feminine, compared with 31% of abortion legality supporters. Half of abortion legality opponents agree that young men are struggling more than young women to find their place in society (50%), compared with 40% of abortion legality supporters.

There is a slight gender gap in support for abortion legality; women (63%) are more likely than men (59%) to say abortion should be legal in all or most cases. Older Americans have become increasingly supportive of abortion legality, with Americans ages 65 and older gradually increasing their support, from 47% in 2010 to 60% in 2025.

Other Notable Findings:

• Democratic young women (91%) are more likely than Democratic young men (82%) to say abortion should be legal in all or most cases, compared with similar shares of young Republican women (33%) and men (32%).
• Abortion legality supporters are more likely than opponents to identify as religiously unaffiliated (37% vs. 12%) and are less likely to exhibit religious behaviors, including praying (36% vs. 68%), reading religious texts (13% vs. 44%), and attending church (13% vs. 44%) weekly.
• Vermont (78%), Massachusetts (77%), Rhode Island (76%), Nevada (74%), and New Hampshire (74%) are the states with the highest support for abortion legality.
• Utah (64%), Wyoming (56%), and West Virginia (54%) have the highest shares of residents who say abortion should be illegal in all or most cases.

Methodology

The survey was designed and conducted by PRRI. The survey was designed and conducted by PRRI. The survey was made possible through the generous support of Michelle Mercer and Bruce Golden. The survey was carried out among a random representative sample of 22,111 adults (age 18 and up) living in all 50 states in the United States. Among those, 20,771 are part of Ipsos’s KnowledgePanel and an additional 1,340 were recruited by Ipsos using opt-in survey panels to increase the sample sizes in smaller states. Interviews were conducted online between February 28 and December 8, 2025. The margin of error for the national survey is +/- 0.87 percentage points at the 95% level of confidence, including the design effect for the survey of 1.7. In addition to sampling error, surveys may also be subject to error or bias due to question wording, context, and order effects.

About PRRI

PRRI is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to conducting independent research at the intersection of religion, culture, and public policy.

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