Des Moines, Iowa—A majority of Iowans oppose a constitutional amendment stripping them of their right to safe and legal abortion, according to a new Des Moines Register/Medicom Iowa poll.
Newly released polling shows nearly 60 percent of Iowans oppose the constitutional amendment. According to the poll, less than one-third of Iowans support the constitutional amendment stripping people of their right to safe and legal abortion. Iowans across the political spectrum oppose the amendment, as well as a majority of religious groups. Additionally, 57 percent of political independents oppose the measure.
“This poll reconfirms what we already knew—Iowans do not support anti-abortion lawmakers stripping them of their constitutional rights by eliminating the right to abortion,” said Jamie Burch Elliott, Planned Parenthood Advocates of Iowa Director of Public Affairs. “Iowans want lawmakers to listen to them and drop the constitutional amendment. If lawmakers keep pushing the amendment, they are deliberately ignoring the will of their constituents to push their niche ideological views.”
A majority of Catholics and Protestants oppose amending the state constitution. Plus, 81 percent of those not identifying with a religion also oppose the amendment. More Iowans disapprove of the measure than a year ago, when lawmakers failed to pass it out of the Iowa House.
“It’s not surprising the poll shows more than half of Catholics and Protestants oppose this appalling move on the part of the anti-abortion legislature to deny people their right to access abortion care,” said Pastor Debbie Griffin, with Downtown Disciples in Des Moines. “As a Christian Pastor, I believe Christians and people of faith respect their neighbors enough to trust them to make the best health care decisions for themselves, their family, their bodies, their health, and their lives.”
The Iowa House passed the measure this legislative session, and it is now awaiting a full Senate vote. Both chambers of the Legislature must pass the legislation before the end of the 2022 session. They must then pass it a second time by the end of the 2024 session before it goes to voters on the ballot November 2024 ballot.
“I found out I was pregnant almost four years ago, and I immediately knew I had to have an abortion,” said Leah Vanden Bosch, an abortion advocate in Iowa. “Not only was I not prepared financially or emotionally, I was not ready physically. I was diagnosed with an eating disorder and my recovery continues today. Abortion is absolutely health care. I represent countless people I’ve met who have needed abortion care.”
Iowans continue speaking up against the proposed amendment and have sent more than 1,500 emails to legislators, voicing their opposition to this attack on the right to safe, legal abortion. Planned Parenthood Advocates of Iowa also launched a five-figure paid advertising statewide campaign sharing experiences of Iowa women before abortion was safe and legal.
Many Iowa organizations have registered their opposition to the proposed constitutional amendment, including the Interfaith Alliance of Iowa, Iowa Coalition Against Domestic Violence, Iowa Coalition Against Sexual Assault, ACLU of Iowa, Iowa Medical Society, League of Women Voters of Iowa and One Iowa.
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Planned Parenthood Advocates of Iowa (PPAI) is an independent, nonprofit, nonpartisan organization with a mission of fostering and preserving a social and political climate favorable to reproductive health. To meet this mission, PPAI engages in lobbying, issues education, and supporter mobilization.
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