Abortion Becomes 2nd Most Important Issue to Voters: Newsweek Poll

Heading into the 2024 election, the economy has been the top issue, and abortion has recently overtaken immigration as the second most important issue, according to Newsweek (Center bias). 

For Context: Vice President Kamala Harris has made abortion a key issue in her campaign and will make her case to women in Texas later this week. Abortion is on the ballot in 10 states this November. According to the New York Times (Lean Left), abortion has risen, even in states with restrictions. 

More Abortion News: Since the overturning of Roe v. Wade, infant mortality has risen nationwide. A study "tallied 247 additional infant deaths in the 1½ years after Dobbs, which amounted to a 7% increase. The vast majority of those deaths — 204 — were due to congenital anomalies, an increase of 10%, according to the study." The researchers' theory is that many women who would have had abortions if congenital anomalies occurred, were more likely to carry on with pregnancies that ended in the child's death after birth when abortion restrictions emerged.

How the Media Covered It: Outlets across the political spectrum have covered voters' rise in interest in abortion. Outlets on the left were more likely to highlight high infant mortality and Harris' appeals to pro-choice voters. On the right, outlets sometimes covered infant mortality, but were more likely to focus on addressing alleged misinformation from pro-choice advocates during the election cycle. For example, while the left has covered deaths and arrests they see as related to restrictive abortion laws, the right has responded with clarifications about the laws, arguing that outlets on the left are misrepresenting the cases. Some on the right have used different polls to show that abortion is not a top concern for voters.