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Press Release
New Exit Polling: Abortion Played a Role in Voters’ Midterms Decisions, and There’s a Mandate for Congress to Take Bold Action
For Immediate Release: Monday, November 9, 2026
Contact: [email protected]
New Exit Polling: Abortion Played a Role in Voters’ Midterms Decisions, and There’s a Mandate for Congress to Take Bold Action
Washington, DC — Today, Reproductive Freedom for All released new post-election research conducted by Impact Research that found abortion played a role in a majority (53%) of battleground voters’ decisions in the 2026 midterms. Nearly half of battleground voters say they would be less likely to support a Republican candidate who supports a national ban on abortion, illustrating how toxic anti-abortion extremism is at the polls. The findings also show majority support for Congress to strengthen protections for reproductive health care, including abortion care.
The polling affirms that voters see abortion as an economic issue, which is how many winning Democratic candidates like Maine Sen.-elect Troy Jackson and Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs framed abortion in their pitch to voters. Nearly six in 10 voters agreed that having a child is the single biggest economic decision most people will make in their lifetimes.
Reproductive Freedom for All President and CEO Mini Timmaraju released the following statement:
“The data is clear: Abortion played a role in how voters cast their ballots, and voters saw Republicans as extremists on the issue. Voters understand reproductive freedom is an affordability issue—and Congress now has a mandate to act boldly and protect abortion access.”
The survey’s key findings include:
- Abortion played a role in voters’ decisions. A majority of battleground voters (53%) said abortion played a role in their vote, including 61% of women without college degrees.
- Support for a national abortion ban is vote-determining. Nearly half (48%) of battleground voters overall, and a majority (53%) of Independents, say they would be less likely to support a Republican candidate who supports a national ban on abortion.
- Voters support congressional action. By a 59%–35% margin, voters supported Congress passing a law providing more protections for people’s right to access reproductive health care, including abortion. Among Independents, support reached 61%, with 32% opposed. More than 4-in-10 indicate that this law should be a very or extremely high priority for Congress.
- Republicans’ abortion positions raised concerns. Nearly four in 10 voters said Republicans’ position on abortion raised serious concerns. A majority, 54%, viewed Republicans as having the more extreme position on abortion, compared with 38% who viewed Democrats that way.
- Reproductive decisions carry economic consequences. Nearly six in 10 battleground voters agreed that having a child is the single biggest economic decision most people will make in their lifetimes.
Read the battleground research memo here.
Maine-specific research findings:
- Voters who heard about abortion the most voted for Troy Jackson. Among voters who heard about candidates’ position on abortion, Jackson defeated Collins by a 10-point margin, 55%–45%.
- Mainers don’t believe Susan Collins shares their views on abortion. More than four in 10 Maine voters said her position raised serious concerns. Additionally, 47% said Collins had different views on abortion than they did, compared with 29% who said she shared their views.
- Maine voters strongly support more reproductive health care protections. By a 2-1 margin, Maine voters supported Congress passing a law providing more protections for people’s right to access reproductive health care, including abortion. Support reached 66% among Independents.
Read the Maine research memo here.
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For over 55 years, Reproductive Freedom for All (formerly NARAL Pro-Choice America) has fought to protect and advance reproductive freedom at the federal and state levels—including access to abortion care, birth control, pregnancy and post-partum care, and paid family leave—for everybody. Reproductive Freedom for All is powered by its more than 4.5 million members from every state and congressional district in the country, representing the 8 in 10 Americans who support legal abortion.
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