Abortion Laws in Democracies: Revisiting the Political Development Aspect of Modernization

It is assumed that civil liberties are well-established in democratic societies. Women's bodily rights are among these liberties, as feminist scholars argue that a woman's right to decide about her own body is a fundamental human right. However, we still observe a wide range of variations in abortion laws in democratic countries that warrant serious inquiry. Since 1994, with the exceptions of the US and Poland's regression in abortion laws, democratic countries have generally opted to liberalize their abortion laws (Center for Reproductive Rights, 2024). Despite a consensus on ensuring access to safe and legal abortions, the extent of liberalization and the grounds on which abortion is permitted vary widely. The main aim of this study is to identify the political determinants of abortion legislation in democratic countries by employing the analytical framework of modernization as a shared point of experience. This study includes a statistical analysis of 63 countries listed as "free" in the Freedom in the World Report 2024, aiming to contribute to the literature by providing a large-N comparative analysis of democratic societies. The findings suggest that abortion laws in democratic societies are shaped by religious organizations' power over policy-makers, as well as the EU as a supranational legislative power, and the quality of democracy.