Abortion 2023: A Survey of Public Opinion in Arizona, California and Texas

Following the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2022 Dobbs decision, the rules governing abortion in the United States have gone from one national policy, under which abortion was constitutionally protected for any reason through 23 to 24 weeks of pregnancy (with state variations as allowed under Casey), to a wide range of policies, all at the discretion of each state. Post-Dobbs, California has maintained an abortion policy similar to that before Dobbs, while Arizona and Texas have placed greater restrictions on abortion, with Arizona banning abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy and Texas banning all abortions except where the mother’s life is at risk. The public opinion data analyzed in this study suggest that Dobbs has allowed states to have abortion policies which more closely align with state public opinion than was the case under Roe/Casey.