Birth Control Approval Falls to 83%, a Record Low in Gallup's 2012-26 Polling
Updated
Updated · Forbes · Jun 9
Birth Control Approval Falls to 83%, a Record Low in Gallup's 2012-26 Polling
3 articles · Updated · Forbes · Jun 9
Summary
83% of Americans now say birth control is morally acceptable, down 7 points from 90% in 2025 and the lowest reading since Gallup began tracking the issue in 2012.
Gallup's survey of 1,001 adults also showed broader slippage in moral acceptance: having children outside marriage fell 9 points to 58%, while gambling dropped to a record-low 57%.
Independents drove much of the decline, with birth-control approval falling 11 points to 79%; their support for divorce dropped to 69% from 82%, and gambling to 53% from 67%.
Partisan divides remained stark on other issues, with abortion deemed morally acceptable by 73% of Democrats versus 18% of Republicans, and changing one's gender by 60% versus 5%.
The results extend a recent Gallup pattern of softening social liberalism after another poll last week found support for same-sex marriage down to 65% from a 71% peak in 2023.