Top line

The election of former President Donald Trump has sparked fears on the left that the new president will restrict abortion, even though he has said he wants to leave it up to the states, and even though he is not Still clear if Congress would support a national ban, Trump would have several options for banning abortion without even needing approval from lawmakers.

Key facts

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News

Trump won the presidential election Tuesday even as voters continued to signal broad support for abortion rights, suggesting the ex-president says he wants to leave the procedure to states that received electors. despite Democrats’ claims that it would go further. Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign and her Democratic allies repeatedly warned before the election that Trump would ban abortion if elected, pointing to the 900-page 2025 plan. political program led by the Heritage Foundation, which presents a proposal to overhaul the executive branch that includes abortion through the FDA and the Comstock Act, even as Trump disavowed the 2025 plan. Voters voted in favor of the plan 2025. electoral measures favoring abortion rights in seven states in the general election, although a measure failed in South Dakota and Nebraska, they instead favored a competing measure banning abortion after 12 weeks. The Florida measure also fell short of the 60% threshold needed to pass, but was still supported by a 57% majority of voters. Vote by the Associated Press found that between 19% and 35% of voters supporting abortion rights measures in states where they were on the ballot also voted for Trump, suggesting they thought he would not ban abortion if elected.

Crucial quote

Trump reiterated his opposition to imposing a national ban on abortion in an August interview on “Fox & Friends” after Democrats claimed at their national convention that he would restrict abortion. “They’re saying at the convention, I want a federal ban,” Trump said, as quoted by CNN. “I would never do it, and they know I said it, there will be no federal ban. It’s now back in the states where it belongs.

What we don’t know

What loopholes Trump could explore. In his comments to undercover reporters, which were secretly recorded and then posted online, Vought also suggested that Trump could take smaller steps, such as defunding Planned Parenthood, telling reporters at the Center for Climate Reporting that he believed that Trump “had actually come up with a strategy that worked.” ” saying he will leave the issue to the states, ” as long as you give people like me in government the opportunity ” to adopt restrictions. “

Chief Spokesperson

Trump’s comments disavowing the Comstock Act and saying he would maintain mifepristone drew criticism from his anti-abortion supporters who want him to ban the procedure, Politico reportedwho claims that the ex-president is “cowardly” and threatens to lose the support of his base. It remains to be seen whether Trump will now give in to these supporters and take action against abortion now that he has been elected.

Large number

74%. That’s the share of women ages 18 to 49 who disagree with Trump’s view that abortion should be left to the states, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation. survey released in August. While support for keeping abortion legal fell largely along partisan lines, respondents from both parties opposed Trump’s position, with 86% of Democratic women and 53% of Republicans disapproving of the idea. leave the question to the States.

Key context

The Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and federal abortion rights in June 2022, sparking a wave of state-level bans that largely benefited Democrats at the polls. With vote showing that a majority of Americans support that abortion remains at least mostly legal, Democrats have made abortion a key election issue, leading to a winning streak for the left in elections where abortion played a central role. Although eager to ban abortion, Republicans have largely been reluctant to denounce abortion on the campaign trail, with a number of Republican candidates even changing their websites or toning down their previous positions on abortion in order to not to seem too extreme. Trump has a history of about-face on his views on abortion, and has pushed to leave abortion up to the states even as he publicly boasts of having played a key role in overturning Roe v. Wade by appointing three conservative judges to the bench. The ex-president launched a 15-week national ban on abortion before deciding to send the issue back to the states, despite pressure from anti-abortion advocates to take a tougher stance .

Further reading

ForbesWhat Americans really think about abortion: Sometimes surprising poll results as DNC gets underwayBy Alison Durkee
ForbesAbortion vote results: Florida and Nebraska reject new protections, Montana adopts abortion rights amendmentBy Alison Durkee
ForbesJD Vance and Project 2025 want to use this 19th century law to ban abortion – without CongressBy Alison Durkee
ForbesRepublican platform rejects abortion ban, but Trump could ban it using this theoryBy Alison Durkee
ForbesAbortion pills: What to know about mifepristone as the Supreme Court upholds the drugBy Alison Durkee
ForbesProject 2025 Explained: Democrats Attack Controversial Right-Wing Political Map for Trump at DNCBy Alison Durkee