Key facts about U.S. voter priorities ahead of the 2022 midterm elections
As Election Day approaches, here’s a look at voters’ issue priorities, based mainly on a Pew Research Center survey conducted Oct. 10-16.
Numbers, Facts and Trends Shaping Your World
As Election Day approaches, here’s a look at voters’ issue priorities, based mainly on a Pew Research Center survey conducted Oct. 10-16.
As the nation’s post-Roe chapter begins and the legal battle shifts to the states, here are key facts about Americans’ views on abortion.
India’s artificially wide ratio of baby boys to baby girls – which arose in the 1970s from the use of prenatal diagnostic technology to facilitate sex-selective abortions – now appears to be narrowing. Son bias has declined sharply among Sikhs, while Christians continue to have a natural balance of sons and daughters.
A majority of Americans say abortion should be legal in all or most cases, but many are open to restrictions; many opponents of legal abortion say it should be legal in some circumstances.
About three-quarters of U.S. Catholics (76%) say abortion should be illegal in some cases but legal in others.
Public attitudes about the legality of abortion are largely divided along partisan lines – and to a greater extent than in past decades.
A slim majority of Americans say there is a lot or some common ground between the foreign policy positions of Republicans and Democrats in Washington.
While the economy remains the dominant issue in this fall’s midterm elections, the issue of abortion has increased markedly in importance. More voters continue to view their midterm vote as an expression of opposition to Joe Biden than support for him. But across both parties, more voters now say Biden is not much of a factor in their vote.
Abortion has risen as an election issue for Latinos, with a majority saying it should be legal in all or most cases. Meanwhile, 80% say the economy is a very important issue when deciding who to vote for in the upcoming congressional midterm elections, a greater share than any other issue.
Democrats hold the edge on many issues, but more Americans agree with Republicans on the economy, crime and immigration. Inflation remains the top concern for Republicans and Republican-leaning independents, with 77% saying it is a very big problem. For Democrats and Democratic leaners, gun violence is the top concern, with about 81% saying it is a very big problem.
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ABOUT PEW RESEARCH CENTER Pew Research Center is a nonpartisan fact tank that informs the public about the issues, attitudes and trends shaping the world. It conducts public opinion polling, demographic research, media content analysis and other empirical social science research. Pew Research Center does not take policy positions. It is a subsidiary of The Pew Charitable Trusts.
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