Two-thirds of Minnesotans say abortion should be legal in ‘all’ or ‘most’ cases

Two-thirds of Minnesotans say abortion should be legal in most or all cases, according to the latest public opinion data from the Public Religion Research Institute, a nonpartisan pollster.

The survey shows 26% of Minnesotans say abortion should be legal in all cases, with an additional 41% saying it should be legal in most cases. Twenty-four percent say it should be illegal in most cases, with just 6% saying it should always be illegal. 

Those breakdowns are similar to U.S. averages. 

Minnesota is one of the states that’s most protective of access to abortion. Last year the DFL trifecta codified abortion rights into state law and removed prior restrictions on the practice, like waiting periods and fetal viability requirements. 

The number of abortions in Minnesota spiked sharply following the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2022 decision overturning Roe v. Wade. More than 90% of Minnesota abortions happen in the first trimester, well before fetal viability, and more than 60% are performed with medication rather than surgery. Part of the recent increase is driven by women traveling to Minnesota from states that put in place new restrictions following the Supreme Court decision.

The PRRI data show that states bordering Minnesota are more likely to favor abortion restrictions. North and South Dakota are two of just six states without a majority in favor of abortion legality in all or most cases, for instance. North Dakota’s support for a total abortion ban is tied for highest in the nation at 16%.

Minnesotans are not particularly dogmatic about the issue, however: Just 31% say they would only vote for a candidate who shares their views on the issue, the second-lowest rate among the states. By contrast, nearly half of people from Kentucky and Oregon said they would only vote for similarly minded candidates.

Nationwide the issue is becoming more politically salient. More than one-third of respondents said they would only vote for a candidate who shares their views on abortion, up from 21% in 2018. Democrats (47%) are more likely than Republicans (34%) to say this.

The national data also show that Democrats have become more supportive of abortion, with 86% saying it should be legal in all or most cases, up from 71% in 2010. While abortion support in the GOP has notably not increased, opposition to the practice has softened: the share of Republicans saying it should be illegal in all cases fell from more than 20% in 2021 to 15% this year.