Do SC gun and abortion laws reflect what South Carolinians actually want? New poll suggests not
South Carolina legislation is out of sync with what many residents actually want when it comes to abortion and gun regulation, a new statewide opinion poll suggests.
As the fate of abortion access in South Carolina again hangs in the balance — a six-week ban recently was signed into law and then almost immediately blocked by a state judge, albeit temporarily — over 40% of South Carolinians say they’re opposed to a six-week abortion ban, with a majority of respondents in support of allowing exceptions for rape, the life of the mother or fatal fetal anomaly, according to the latest Winthrop Poll.
When it comes to guns, 75% of Winthrop Poll respondents say only persons 21 years or older should be allowed to purchase a firearm, and many support other gun regulation measures related to background checks and the sale of high-capacity magazines.
On abortion, specifically, 43% of respondents said they oppose a six-week abortion ban, with 37% in favor, according to Winthrop, which polled 1,051 South Carolina adults in May. Perhaps not surprisingly, 52% of Republicans said they support the ban, while 57% of Democrats oppose. But, the poll noted, all opinions on abortion are not so clearly split along party lines.
“A minority, but consistent, number of Democrats oppose abortion under several conditions while a significant number of Republicans believe that there are several conditions under which a woman should be able to obtain a legal abortion,” said Scott Huffman, Winthrop Poll director and political scientist. “Not all the people who consistently vote for a party are in absolute lockstep on all of the issues.”
Although abortion remains a deeply partisan issue, when it comes to limited exceptions, the divide between Republicans and Democrats shrinks. In cases where the pregnancy would threaten the life of the mother, 90% of Democrats and 75% of Republicans are in favor of abortion, according to the poll. Overall, 81% of respondents support this exception.
In cases where the baby is likely to be born with severe disabilities or health problems, however, the partisan divide grew a bit larger, with 75% of Democrats and 43% of Republicans in favor of the exception.
Last month, the state Senate advanced the so-called “fetal heartbeat” abortion ban, S. 474, in a 27-19 vote, mostly along party lines. It bans abortion beginning around six weeks of pregnancy, before many women know they are pregnant, and it includes exceptions for rape and incest up to 12 weeks, fatal fetal anomaly and the mother’s life.
All five female senators — three Republicans, one Democrat and one Independent — voted against the House-modified bill, arguing the General Assembly had more important issues to debate and that women should make their own decisions regarding their health care.
Planned Parenthood South Atlantic, the Greenville Women’s Clinic and two physicians who provide abortions in South Carolina immediately filed a lawsuit in state court after Gov. Henry McMaster signed the bill into law, asking that the law be blocked and for a temporary restraining order to prevent the law’s enforcement, which Judge Clifton Newman granted.
Parisian divide shrinks on gun control
A similar number of Democrats and Republicans agree on certain measures relating to regulating the purchase and possession of firearms.
Some 81% of Democrats and 73% of Republicans in the poll said they are in favor of legislation that would require a completed background check before a buyer can take possession of a gun, even if the background check takes longer than three days, according to the poll. The state is one of 28 that continue to allow guns to be sold to people whose federal background check have not been completed after three days. It’s a practice known as the “Charleston Loophole,” named after the mass shooting at Charleston’s Emanual AME Church in 2015, carried out by a gunman who fell through the background check loophole.
More than half of South Carolinians want to ban the sale of high-capacity gun magazines; 47% of Republicans support such a ban, compared to 73% of Democrats.
And 83% of Democrats and 74% of Republicans say no one under 21 should be allowed to purchase a firearm, according to the poll. Three-quarters of all respondents were in favor of setting a 21-year-old age limit for gun sales.
These polling opinions appear at odds with how state lawmakers have recently voted on gun measures.
Earlier this year, by a vote of 90-30, the state House passed H.3594, an expansive gun rights bill that allows law-abiding citizens to carry a firearm openly or concealed without a concealed weapons permit, including those at least 18 years old.
“This body was told it’s (this bill) not going to change who can possess a gun,” state Rep. Seth Rose, D-Richland, said during a House debate on the bill in February. “That’s not true, because right now if you want to possess a gun and you want to get a concealed weapons permit, you have to be 21 years old. But in this legislation at the age of 18, no training needed, go get your gun.”
The proposal failed to clear the Senate, but could be taken up again next year.
This story was originally published June 6, 2023 at 10:18 AM.
