A MetroNews West Virginia Poll suggests that the state’s voters view the abortion issue differently than their elected representatives.
Shortly after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade and sent the abortion issue back to the states in 2022, the West Virginia Legislature voted overwhelmingly to ban abortion except in rare circumstances.
The bill passed the House 77-17, meaning it had the support of 82 percent of the Delegates who voted. In the Senate, the bill passed 22-7, so 76 percent of Senators who voted backed the bill.
The MetroNews West Virginia Poll results indicate the state is much more divided than that. Our pollster asked voters this question:
“As you may or may not know, beginning in September of 2022 West Virginia prohibits abortion at all stages of pregnancy except in the case of a non-medically viable fetus, an ectopic pregnancy or medical emergency. Victims of rape and incest can also obtain an abortion up to eight weeks of gestation, but only if they report to law enforcement first.”
The results were split right down the middle. Forty-five percent of respondents said they support the policy as reflected in current law, while 44 percent said they oppose West Virginia’s current policy. Eleven percent said they were not sure.
That suggests a disconnect between the legislature’s vote and the will of the people. However, that is how our government works since we are a representative democracy, not a pure democracy. We elect representatives to act on our behalf when determining policy.
But some states have turned the abortion issue over to voters, and others are following suit. According to Kaiser Family Foundation, since Roe was overturned four states (California, Michigan, Ohio and Vermont) have amended their state constitutions to protect the right to abortion, and two states, Kentucky and Kansas, have rejected measures to curtail the right to abortion.
Meanwhile, nine states (Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Maryland, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada and New York) have measures on the November General Election ballot protecting abortion rights. Nebraska has two initiatives—one to ban abortion in the second and third trimesters and one to recognize the right to abortion up to viability.
West Virginia Democratic Gubernatorial candidate Steve Williams has called for a statewide vote here. “This is not a matter of being pro-life or pro-choice,” Williams said last May. “This is a matter of freedom and we’re just simply suggesting let’s put freedom on the ballot.”
But that would require approval by two-thirds of the members of both the House and Senate. That is not going to happen since the 2022 vote showed that at least two-thirds of lawmakers want abortion outlawed. Additionally, when the MetroNews West Virginia Poll asked voters what the most important problems in the state are, only six percent said abortion issues. Forty one percent said economy, employment and jobs.
So, what does this all mean?
Most West Virginians do not believe abortion is the biggest issue in the state, but when they are asked to weigh in on the state’s restrictive law, they are divided evenly. It is evident, however, that the people’s representatives are not evenly divided; they are decidedly pro-life.
And that means until the makeup of the legislature changes significantly, the current law will remain in place.