Amid abortion pill battle, most Americans say medication abortion should be legal

As a court battle looms over the abortion pill mifepristone, most Americans say medication abortion should be legal in their state, according to a study published Tuesday by Pew Research Center.

The study, conducted from March 27 to April 2 by the Washington, D.C.-based nonpartisan think tank, found that 53% of U.S. adults say abortion pills should be legal in their state. Meanwhile, 22% say medication abortion should be illegal, and 24% say they are not sure.

Medication abortion makes up over half of all abortions in the United States, and its future has been thrown into uncertainty after two dueling federal court rulings last week.

Study shows partisan, demographic divides in abortion pill support

The Pew study revealed partisan and demographic divisions in support for medication abortion nationwide.

• Partisan divides: About 73% of Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents said medication abortion should be legal in their state. About 35% of Republicans and Republican-leaning independents said the same.
• Age: Younger adults were more likely to say medication abortion should be legal in their state with 66% of adults under 30 years old saying abortion pills should be legal, compared to half of adults 30 and older. Younger women were particularly likely to support access to abortion pills with 71% of women under 30 saying they should be legal in their state.
• Race: Majorities of white, Black and Asian respondents said abortion pills should be legal in their state, but responses among Hispanic adults were more mixed. About 46% said medication abortion should be legal in their state while 25% said they should be illegal and 29% were not sure.

Previous poll also finds majority of Americans support abortion pill access

About 62% of American say banning medication abortion would harm women and their families, according to a Ipsos poll published in February. The poll was conducted on behalf of the EMAA, or Expanding Medication Abortion Access, Project.

This poll, which included a sample of over 1,000 U.S. adults, also found partisan divides in support for medication abortion access with 84% of Democrats saying abortion pills should remain legal in the U.S., compared to 67% of independents and 49% of Republicans.

Dip deeper: Battle over medication abortion