Many Tennesseans’ support gun reform and abortion access, and lawmakers who oppose them | CPT PPP Coverage

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Public support for Tennessee politicians has risen in recent months, according to a Vanderbilt poll out Friday. However, the report also found that support is higher for measures that the Republican-controlled statehouse opposes, including abortion access and gun reform.

More than half of Tennesseans now describe themselves as pro-choice, compared to only a third in 2012. That support is even greater for exceptions to the state’s total abortion ban, with 82% of respondents in favor of abortions in the case of rape or medical necessity and 81% in favor of exceptions in the case of incest. On the subject of in vitro fertilization, or IVF, an overwhelming majority of Tennesseans support the treatment and do not see it as a moral issue.

The poll also found strong bipartisan support for legalizing marijuana, expanding Medicaid and gun reform. More than half of Republicans and more than three-quarters of Democrats support legalizing marijuana for recreational use.

Tennesseans oppose, three to one, expanding the right to carry long guns such as hunting rifles, assault rifles and shotguns. An overwhelming majority of voters support a “red flag” law, which would restrict gun access to people deemed a threat to themselves or others.

“All four gun reform options tested in this poll gained strong support from Tennesseans,” Vanderbilt Poll Co-Director Josh Clinton said. “They by and large support legislative action to increase the regulation of guns—including requiring owners to report lost and stolen guns and limiting gun access for individuals at high risk of harming themselves or others.”

Gov. Bill Lee supported a red flag law after the Covenant School shooting last year, but the Republican supermajority in the statehouse rejected the proposal. State Republicans also oppose amending the state’s abortion ban. But despite that opposition, the approval rating for state politicians across the board has gone up since the spring.

The statehouse’s approval rating jumped from 46% in May to 53%, mirroring the jump in approval for U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn by the same percentages. Gov. Bill Lee had the highest approval rating at 60%, up from 53%, while U.S. Sen. Bill Hagerty’s rose from 40% to 46%.

Although top officials made Tennessee one of 10 states to refuse expanding Medicaid, an overwhelming majority of both Republicans and Democrats polled by Vanderbilt support an expansion.

Across all party affiliations and demographics, Tennesseans agreed that mental health care access should be a top priority for the state. A majority also agreed that health care costs are too high and that the federal government should do more to negotiate lower prices and cap prescription drug costs for adults with insurance.

As for who is to blame for high health care costs, Tennesseans surveyed ranked health care companies as the most responsible, with pharmaceutical companies ranked second. Doctors and hospitals were ranked a distance fourth.

“These numbers are a positive indicator of approval for Nashville’s health care economy, which is historically rooted in the provider space—the doctors and hospitals that receive little blame, especially when compared to the other sectors of the industry,” John Geer, co-director of the Vanderbilt Poll, said.