Newsweek Poll: Abortion Now No. 2 Issue Behind Economy

Abortion has replaced immigration as the second-most important issue for voters in this year's election, according to a poll released Monday.

The economy remains the No. 1 issue as the Nov. 5 general election nears, a Newsweek survey found.

The outlet's survey asked voters, "Which issues are most likely to determine how you vote in the November 2024 Presidential Election? You may select up to three."

The results showed that during the past 16 months, only four issues out of 24 were repeatedly selected by more than 2-in-5 respondents: the economy, abortion, immigration, and healthcare.

In every Newsweek survey since July 2023, the economy was named voters' top issue, regularly being cited by roughly 60% of respondents.

Abortion was cited by 38% of respondents and immigration was cited by 36% in the latest poll.

"The attempt by both Joe Biden and Kamala Harris to diminish the surging importance of immigration initially succeeded but ultimately failed, with immigration moving from a clear second earlier this year to fourth in terms of importance over the summer before recovering to being virtually tied with abortion for second,” Philip van Scheltinga, director of research at Redfield & Wilton Strategies, told Newsweek.

"The Harris campaign has had some success in accentuating the issue of abortion, particularly among female and young voters. However, while abortion is now the most important issue for Harris voters, slightly above the economy, the primacy of this issue has not quite registered for the rest of the voting public and the swing voters who will decide this election."

The Newsweek survey also found that the economy remains most important for voters across all demographics, including gender, age, and political party.

Immigration increases in importance the older voters get. About one-quarter of those aged 18-26 and 27-42 listed it among their key issues, whereas it was regularly cited by almost half of those aged 59 to 75.

Earlier this month, The Associated Press reported abortion passed inflation to become the top issue in the presidential election for women younger than 30 after Harris replaced Biden at the top of the Democrat ticket.

The Newsweek polls between July 2023 and October 2024 were conducted by Redfield & Wilton Strategies. Cumulatively, 34,800 eligible voters were asked about the key issues of the 2024 election.