Women talk about how abortion influenced their voting behavior

The 2024 presidential election will be the first since the Supreme Court overturned the Roe v. Wade ruling, which protected the nation's right to abortion.

The gender gap was clearly visible in this election. Polls suggest Kamala Harris has the advantage among women and former President Donald Trump has a similar lead among men.

The BBC spoke to female voters in the final days of the campaign about how they think about gender and abortion.

Michelle works as a quality engineer in Arizona. The 38-year-old is a registered Republican but plans to vote for Kamala Harris.

I'm concerned about women's rights and women's health care. I'm not a single-issue voter, but this is a big issue. I work in the medical field and was personally deeply affected by the Roe v. Wade decision because I did not have access to many of the medications I needed. No one was clear about their legality, even if they were used for other purposes.

The Republicans' entire stance is to shrink government and not let government make my personal decisions. So why are they trying to legislate what a woman can do with her body?

(A Harris presidency) would mean that everything my parents told me when I was younger is true – just because you're a girl doesn't mean you're limited.

This Texas nurse voted for Trump in the last presidential election and plans to support him again.

(Trump) definitely said things he probably shouldn't have said. I'd have to shake my finger at that, especially as a woman, but I haven't heard anything that would make me change my mind about my vote.

I don't choose personality. I choose politics. I don't have to marry the man. I don't have to worry about him. I have to deal with his politics.

On the subject of abortion, (Harris) does not provide a pregnancy parameter for how late someone can have an abortion. This cannot be open-ended. I was a neonatal intensive care unit nurse for 17 years. I care about women's rights. I care about women. The mother is the first patient. What scares me is that she won't give an answer.

This Illinois Democrat plans to vote for Harris on Election Day. Back in 2020, she supported the Democratic candidacy and voted for Joe Biden.

I'm definitely concerned about the direction reproductive rights are heading in parts of the country. I feel like Trump's attempts to convey that he understands why (reproductive rights) is an important issue for women have completely failed.

I think Harris has an innate understanding of the importance of simply being a woman and a woman of color. Would I like to see her explain her plans for potentially expanding reproductive rights in a little more detail? Absolutely. But Trump has set the bar so low that she really could continue to not even mention it and still do better.

(A Harris presidency) brings tears to my eyes just thinking about it. I have a nine-year-old daughter and she is old enough to have ambitions and pay attention to the world around her.

This library assistant voted for Trump in 2020, but now remains undecided and is considering “writing in” a candidate – that is, casting a vote for someone who is not officially running.

This isn't my first rodeo and I'm at a point in my life where I can overlook the advertising they do to two specific groups.

It's wonderful that Harris, as a woman, is seriously running for president and that she's been vice president and has some experience. But when Trump was in office, I wasn't particularly upset about what he did.

I wouldn't mind having a female president, but some of Harris' political doctrines and what I believe to be right don't align.

Angela is a graduate student in Iowa. A Democrat, she supported Biden in the last presidential election and plans to vote for Harris.

I would really like this to be a moment of celebration as we elect a woman of color to our highest office, but unfortunately given the closeness of the election against Trump and the disappointment of (Harris's) campaign on some key issues for me, it was difficult to be as celebratory as I would like.

Obviously abortion is a major issue that needs to be addressed, but I should say I'm not necessarily happy with either candidate's approaches to addressing the issue.

I understand that Harris has a policy where she wants to codify Roe vs. Wade, but I think women's rights and issues go beyond just access to abortion. Trump is very uncertain on the issue of women's rights, so it is difficult to pin him down to a particular stance.

This retired Republican who plans to vote for Trump. She also supported the former president in 2020.

I think (Trump) is really the only option because I just think Harris is clueless and incompetent. I think she would be a disaster for this country if she just listened to her mumbling and dodging. I just have a terrible feeling about her.

Actually, I'm pro-choice within reason. No late abortion. I don't agree with that. But I think Trump is being sensible by really leaving (the legislation) up to the states themselves.

Harris doesn't have much to offer, so that's her big selling point with women. In other words, she doesn't have much substance, so she just keeps talking about the abortion issue.

This independent voted for Biden in the 2020 presidential election and voted for Harris via absentee ballot this year.

Women's reproductive rights are of great importance to me as a woman, especially living in the state of Florida, where there is an amendment on the ballot guaranteeing protection of abortion rights.

I really want to support a party that advocates for women's reproductive rights, and not just women but for everyone, because what can I say that this won't spread elsewhere? It usually starts with women, but it goes on and on.

Our government is at least 50 years behind the times in many ways – especially in other countries around the world where it is better represented. I have a niece who I love very much. The fact that she (a president) could see and that it was normal for her will be huge.

The independent voter from Georgia describes herself as a left-leaning moderate. Because of her faith and anti-abortion views, she is not supporting Harris or Trump this year.

I was going to vote for Harris, but then she started emphasizing again that abortion means reproductive health… I'm a Catholic. I am for life.

The problem I've encountered is that I don't know how a Catholic can vote for someone who spits something like what we recently saw (from Trump) at Madison Square Garden. I take very seriously the call to welcome the stranger and feed and clothe him.

So under these circumstances I have no one to choose.

This retired Texas resident voted for Biden in the last presidential election and voted for Harris early on.

I'm so scared. We actually can't go back. It scares me very much. I had more rights than my granddaughter will have in the future, and that's not right.

It's so disturbing that it's so close. (Trump) is a felon out on bail. I don't understand the Republicans. They used to be supposedly the law and order party, and now it is this one.

I think a lot of (women) come out and say, 'Why are you telling us what to do with our bodies?' Abortion is a personal thing and is at the discretion of the doctor and the woman. It's none of my business.

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