The best example of how candidates botch their approach is on the issue of abortion. A majority of Americans want to uphold Roe v. Wade, but a longstanding 80 percent of them support restrictions of some kind (according to 2019 Gallup polling), most notably in the third trimester (as of 2018 Gallup polling, 65 percent support restrictions in second trimester as well). Only Senator Amy Klobuchar and Ms. Gabbard have admitted to supporting third-trimester restrictions. The rest, including the current front-runners Senator Elizabeth Warren and the former vice president Joe Biden, have offered rare consideration for restrictions or conversation around why such large portions of the country support them.
Abortion and reproductive rights may not be a “deal breaker” vote for swing voters, as a recent Fox News poll revealed, but it is an issue that matters deeply to them, especially those who hold faith in high regard. More to the point, it’s curious that so many Democratic candidates hold a view consistent with so few voters. No one should swap genuine beliefs about abortion to appease polling numbers, but if these candidates represent the American people, they are statistically divergent from them in a dramatic way. This may mean a few of them are hiding their authentic beliefs about abortion for political safety — but that’s to their detriment.
