Poll: Record number of U.S. adults 'dissatisfied' with abortion laws

Jan. 23 (UPI) -- More Americans are now dissatisfied with some aspect of U.S. abortion laws than they have ever been, Gallup said in a new survey.

The pollster said 58 percent of U.S. adults are dissatisfied -- believing the laws are either too strict or not strict enough. The figure is a 7 percent increase since last year. Just 32 percent said they are satisfied, a record low since Gallup began asking the question.

Those satisfied with abortion laws reached a high of 48 percent in 2002.

Republican-controlled states like Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi and Ohio have passed some of the United States' strictest abortion laws over the past two years -- laws proponents hope eventually will be appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court to challenge its landmark 1973 ruling in Roe vs. Wade.

One of the most notable changes in Gallup's survey is how the dissatisfied want to change abortion laws.

"Historically, most of this dissatisfied group wanted abortion laws to be stricter; relatively few wanted them less strict," Gallup's Lydia Saad said in a statement Wednesday. " On average from 2001 to 2017, about a quarter of U.S. adults were dissatisfied with abortion laws and wanted them to be stricter.

"However, since then, the percentage wanting the laws to be less strict has increased to the point that roughly equal percentages of U.S. adults now are dissatisfied and favor less strict laws (22 percent) as are dissatisfied and want stricter laws (24 percent)."

Among those who say they're dissatisfied, 44 percent of Republicans said they want stricter laws and 31 percent of Democrats want them loosened. Thirty-two percent of Republicans, 40 percent of Democrats and 36 percent of independents said they are satisfied with current laws.

Gallup polled more than 1,000 U.S. adults for the survey, which has a margin of error of 4 points.