Tennesseans misunderstand abortion law, want exceptions

By JONATHAN MATTISE
Associated Press

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — New Vanderbilt University polling has found that most registered voters in Tennessee want exceptions for rape or incest in the state’s sweeping abortion ban. But the poll also found that they largely don’t know the specifics of what’s in the law as it stands today. The state votes consistently for Republicans and has one of the strictest abortion bans in the country. Three out of four people polled think that abortion should be legal if the pregnancy results from rape or incest, an exception that doesn’t exist in current law. But fewer than 1 in 5 were able to pick which of the statements Vanderbilt provided that closely summed up what the current abortion law entails.