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For a long time, when pollsters would ask questions on abortion, the “pro-choice” position would come out comfortably ahead. That changed in May 2009, when for the first time ever, Gallup reported that a majority of respondents identified as “pro-life.” “Pro-life” has actually outpolled “pro-choice” in five of nine Gallup polls since then.

As such, groups like NARAL have had to work harder to claim that there’s broad support for legal abortion. This past August, NARAL released another poll on the subject, one which gave respondents a subtly different set of choices. The alternatives were 1) abortion is morally acceptable and should be legal; 2) personally opposed to abortion, but it should remain legal; and 3) abortion should be illegal.

A plurality of respondents preferred the second option, and NARAL quickly announced that the first and second options combined commanded majority support. Of course, the three questions did not allow for much nuance. Specifically, the poll did not ask about the 20-week abortion ban or other incremental pro-life laws that tend to poll well. (Read more about the recent polls saying more Americans are pro-life HERE)