People who voted to elect Donald Trump the forty seventh president in Tuesday night time’s election expressed issues about a number of main points, together with the state of democracy, the economic system, immigration and overseas coverage.
The state of democracy specifically was crucial concern to voters, with 35% saying as a lot in response to an ABC Information preliminary exit ballot, adopted by 31% who stated the economic system was crucial concern to them.
Well being care, nevertheless, didn’t appear to be a serious voting concern for a lot of People. Although abortion, for instance, was among the many high 5 voting points, solely 14% stated it was their most vital concern, the exit ballot confirmed.
Specialists instructed ABC Information that regardless of issues concerning the repeal of the Inexpensive Care Act (ACA) and additional restrictions on abortion rights, different points have been high of thoughts for People.
“Well being care points are all the time a priority to folks, however definitely there have been different points that have been extra vital to folks at the moment,” Dr. Perry Halkitis, dean of the College of Public Well being at Rutgers College in New Jersey, instructed ABC Information. “It appeared just like the economic system and migration have been the most important points, however particularly the economic system. Individuals expressed very critical issues about costs, very critical issues concerning the affordability of issues, very critical issues about inflation.”
“And people surpassed issues about well being care entry and or reproductive rights, and many individuals voted based mostly on their pocketbooks as an alternative of their well being care rights and entry,” Halkitis continued.
Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump and former first girl Melania Trump depart the stage at an election night time watch occasion, Nov. 6, 2024, in West Palm Seaside, Fla.
Evan Vucci/AP
Inexpensive Care Act
Throughout his first time period, then-President Trump tried a number of instances to repeal the ACA however was unsuccessful. He was promising as late November 2023 to interchange it, saying Republicans “ought to by no means surrender” making an attempt.
Nevertheless, all through 2024, Trump stated on a number of events, each on social media and in the course of the presidential debate, that he wished to make the ACA “higher” slightly than substitute it.
In the end, worries about heath care and potential adjustments to the ACA did not even crack the highest 5 voting points in ABC Information exit polls.
Halkitis stated he would not suppose there can be radical adjustments to the ACA throughout Trump’s second time period as a result of it is “baked into folks’s lives.” Nevertheless, he does fear about laws or insurance policies that might restrict the forms of companies which might be obtainable from well being care suppliers, as opposed to an entire repeal or dismantling of the ACA.
“One instance is that within the state of Texas, a few yr in the past, the district courtroom determined that the pre-exposure prophylaxis, which is using one tablet as soon as a day to stop HIV, didn’t must be lined by insurance coverage of a specific firm,” Halkitis stated. “I feel issues like that that talk to folks’s beliefs, whether or not appropriate or incorrect, [that] could have an effect on the sorts of well being care companies which might be supplied to folks, if the president-elect is to make any adjustments to the Inexpensive Care Act.”
One other instance is the federal contraceptive protection assure. Beneath a provision of the ACA, most personal insurance policy should cowl the complete value of most contraceptives, reminiscent of contraception, with out making sufferers pay out-of-pocket prices.
If the incoming Trump administration permits employers and faculties to make use of spiritual and ethical exemptions to stop protection of contraceptives, because the White Home did throughout Trump’s first time period, this will likely result in out-of-pocket prices that make contraceptives unaffordable to some, some specialists instructed ABC Information.
Additionally in danger may very well be these with preexisting situations. Beneath the ACA, insurers can’t cost extra or deny protection to somebody or their little one due to a preexisting well being situation. Nevertheless, Vice President-elect JD Vance has steered putting folks with persistent situations into separate danger swimming pools, which may increase premiums for these with preexisting situations.
“I hope that does not occur as a result of that will truly be disastrous for therefore many thousands and thousands of People,” Halkitis stated. “What I feel would occur is that, in the event that they have been to switch the preexisting situations clause, and put the folks in a distinct bracket, is that it could grow to be unaffordable for folks to have medical insurance.”
Dr. Stephen Patrick, professor and chair of the Division of Well being Coverage and Administration on the Rollins College of Public Well being at Emory College in Georgia, stated he thinks voters in future elections can be motivated to go to the polls in the event that they see modifications to the ACA.
For instance, Patrick stated public opinion is mostly favorable for provisions reminiscent of mother and father with the ability to hold their youngsters on their insurance policy till age 26, as a 2019 KFF Well being Monitoring Ballot discovered, which can have impressed folks to go to the polls in previous elections.
“We all know that as you begin to make modifications to issues just like the Inexpensive Care Act, folks do care as we begin to modify issues, or change issues when it impacts their medical insurance,” Patrick instructed ABC Information. “In case you say to somebody, ‘protecting your child in your medical insurance till they’re 26,’ folks usually are in favor of these forms of insurance policies.”
Reproductive rights
Some political strategists believed that the U.S. Supreme Courtroom’s 2022 determination overruling Roe v. Wade would drive voters who help abortion rights to the polls to vote for Kamala Harris. Trump himself took credit score for the ruling, boasting that he “was in a position to kill Roe v. Wade.”
Register favor of proposition 139, the correct to abortion initiative, are displayed on the entrance room of the Tucson HQ of Arizona Listing, an affiliation made to empower and elect progressive pro-choice Democratic girls leaders, in Tucson, Ariz., Oct. 16, 2024.
Olivier Touron/AFP through Getty Photos, FILE
Whereas supporters of authorized abortion nonetheless broke strongly for Harris, Trump’s strategy specializing in states’ rights appeared to resonate with voters who did not view abortion entry as incompatible with a Trump presidency.
In Arizona, 23% who voted “sure” on the state’s initiative enshrining abortion rights within the state structure additionally voted for Trump. In Nevada, the place one other abortion-rights measure was accredited, 25% of “sure” voters likewise went for Trump, in response to the ABC Information exit ballot.
“I feel what we’re seeing [in] the exit polls is that abortion was a vital concern amongst many, many citizens. Nevertheless, these voters didn’t all vote for Kamala Harris,” Dr. Leslie Kantor, professor and chair of the Division of City World Public Well being on the Rutgers College of Public Well being, instructed ABC Information. “I feel that there was truly a specific amount of confusion, which was sown fairly intentionally by the Trump-Vance marketing campaign within the remaining weeks, making an attempt to persuade those that, in truth, they do not oppose abortion, when the observe document clearly reveals that they do.”
Kantor stated that is evident in statements by Trump and Vance during which they stated the president-elect would veto a nationwide abortion ban if it got here throughout his desk, or in feedback by Trump during which he stated he wouldn’t use the 150-year-old Comstock Act to ban mail supply of abortion remedy.
Kantor famous that, regardless of Trump expressing satisfaction for appointing justices to the Supreme Courtroom to overrule Roe v. Wade, he was much less vocal about abortion rights on the marketing campaign path.
“In 2024, when individuals are seeing the devastating penalties of the overturn [sic] of Roe v. Wade, he actually backed away from that place and was a lot much less clear, and voters have been clearly much less clear,” she stated. “As a result of if you see someone who says, ‘I feel abortion needs to be authorized generally,’ after which voting for someone who clearly doesn’t imagine abortion needs to be authorized, you recognize that folks have been confused.”
Preliminary exit ballot outcomes from ABC Information present that abortion was an vital voting concern for younger girls, with about 19% of all girls voters saying it was their most vital concern, rising to 42% amongst girls youthful than 30.
Kantor additional famous that she thinks younger girls are scared after studying information stories about girls pushed to the brink of loss of life or dying after medical care was denied as a result of physicians have been hesitant to behave on account of restrictions to state abortion legal guidelines. She added that some abortion care suppliers are additionally leaving states the place abortion care is restricted.
“Younger girls are terrified about what’s taking place throughout the nation,” Kantor stated. “The reality is it is not even protected to have a wished being pregnant on this nation. …So, I feel younger girls are watching 30 years, presumably 25 years, of getting to handle their sexual and reproductive well being with only a few suppliers and only a few rights.”
It might be tough to entry abortion companies even in states the place care is now authorized. In Missouri, voters enshrined the correct to reproductive freedom within the state’s structure, successfully ending the state’s restrictive ban. Nevertheless, abortion for now stays unavailable within the state.
“Entry to companies is extremely restricted and, sooner or later, having a proper is meaningless if you cannot truly get the service,” Kantor stated.
ABC Information’ Gary Langer and Gibran Okar contributed to this report.
