Dobbs v. Jackson overturned Roe v. Wade in June 2022, removing the federal stamp of approval on abortion and kicking the issue back to the states. The decision reopened the debate on where abortion should be decided: at the federal level or the state level.
At the last two CPAC national conferences, CPAC posed this question to its attendees in the annual straw poll, and both years yielded overwhelming results in favor of the state level.
In the 2023 straw poll, participants were asked, “Since the Supreme Court overturned Roe Vs. Wade, which should Republicans make more a priority: 1. Regulating abortion laws at the state level, or 2. Continuing to push for more abortion laws through Congress”. A resounding 74% of participants responded in favor of regulating abortion laws at the state level.
That number only grew in the 2024 CPAC straw poll. This year, 83% responded in favor of the issue being decided by the states. Both years, only 13% of participants advocated for a national solution while the percentage of those undecided shrunk from one to the next. In 2023, 13% were unsure of how the issue of abortion should be settled, but in 2024, just 4% had yet to make up their mind.
The conclusion is clear, and the American people are certain: abortion is not a federal issue. The American people want the Tenth Amendment upheld and the issue decided by the states.
