Recent Poll Finds Abortion is the "Most Important Issue" for Black Women

As the discourse around abortion in America continues to swirl, more Black women are concerned about its future. Research firm KFF released a poll showing that over 25 percent of Black female voters state abortion as their top issue for the upcoming election season. The November vote will be the first presidential election since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.

The poll found that more than half of voters describe abortion as a very important issue, but not the most important. However, 28 percent of Black women say abortion is the “most important issue” this election season. That’s more than one in four Black women listing the topic as their top concern.

For a long time, the Black female demographic has ranked abortion as a high issue on their list. The abortion rate for Black women is almost five times that for white women, according to the Guttmacher Institute. Add to that, the fact that more than half of Black Americans live in Southern states where local government strictly enacted abortion laws following the Supreme Courts ruling, and it’s no wonder why Black women are sharing their concern.

“Abortion — it’s clearly resonating with this group,” Ashley Kirzinger said in an interview with the Associated Press. “When we think about abortion access and who is disadvantaged, it’s Black women.”

In February, CBS News reported on a new memo from The Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee that was in circulation. It highlighted the disproportionate impact of abortion bans on Black women in GOP-led states. CBS News also shared research compiled around the topic. The research demonstrated that the Black maternal mortality rate is significantly higher in Republican-led states with restrictive abortion bans. 

Black women have been a key factor in many recent political races. According to the League of Women Voters, they have played pivotal roles in voter mobilization and voter turnout for years. Over two-thirds of Black women voted in the 2020 presidential election, marking them as the third highest rate for any race-gender group.