With Texas’ new abortion laws in effect, the controversial changes continue to drive the debate. The volume of online discussion about the issue spiked ten-fold over the first 48 hours after the laws came into force on September 1. Most of the discussion expressed opposition to the changes, as the overall average sentiment dropped into deeply negative territory.
While criticism from Democratic supporters is not unexpected, Eyesover’s Impact Measurement shows that there was also significant criticism among Republicans towards the new laws. Our measurement looks for opinion changes towards a party based on individual statements on the issues.
In this case, during the first 48 hours, the number of people who usually speak positively about Republicans but are opposed to the legal changes was 22% higher than the number of individuals who have neutral or opposing views on the party but spoke favorably on the new laws.
While the volume of discussion and the changes in net support have decreased over the past few days, the initial loss of support for Texas Republicans on the issue could be more evidence of shifting opinions in the state.
