Abortion Not Prominent In Presidential Race So Far But Issue Favors Obama In Battleground Areas, Analysis Says

Main Category:Abortion  Date:2008-8-18 17:43:00  view:63
Although the issue of abortion rights has not played a large role so far in the 2008 presidential election campaign, it isn't going away, and the candidates soon will have to field more questions on the issue, according to an analysis by the Christian Science Monitor's Patchwork Nation.

However, when abortion does arise as an issue in the campaign, an analysis from a 2004 Annenberg survey suggests that it might benefit Democratic candidate Sen. Barack Obama (Ill.) over Republican candidate Sen. John McCain (Ariz.). According to Patchwork Nation, although the polling numbers can change given how questions on abortion are worded, the analysis suggests that after 35 years of debate and discussion, many Americans may be reluctant to further tinker with the nation's abortion laws. The analysis found that a majority of people indicated that they oppose greater restrictions on abortion -- especially in battleground counties such as wealthy suburban enclaves, rapidly growing and diversifying counties and counties with high numbers of service workers --Patchwork Nation reports.

Specific positions on abortion rights are hard to find for both McCain and Obama, according to Patchwork Nation. McCain has said that he supports overturning Roe v. Wade and that his Supreme Court nominees would be similar to Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Samuel Alito, both of whom are presumed to oppose Roe, according to Patchwork Nation. Obama supports abortion rights and opposed the nominations of Roberts and Alito, Patchwork Nation reports. On Obama's campaign Web site, his support for Roe is about a third of the way down an issue page devoted to Women.

The analysis says that McCain has a twofold question on abortion: Will his antiabortion stance hurt him in key counties where the 2008 race looks to be close? And will his lack of enthusiasm in declaring his position hurt voter turnout for him in socially conservative strongholds? (Chinni, Patchwork Nation, Christian Science Monitor, 7/29).

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