Descriptive paper concerning abortion

 I want to talk about the pros and cons of abortion. I know this can be a highly controversial topic, but it’s something that needs to be talked about. Abortion isn’t something that is talked about in society much. Abortion is the termination of a pregnancy, but unlike a miscarriage, this happens intentionally. There has been a lot of talk about the attempts to overturn Roe V Wade. While it may be controversial, I think it’s important to talk about and go over the pros and the cons of abortion so that way you can see the perspective from both sides.

There are quite a few pros to abortion. One major thing that is important is protecting the health of the person who is pregnant. Sometimes when a woman gets pregnant, the pregnancy implants in a wrong part of a body and can be deadly to a woman if it isn’t terminated. Sometimes termination of a pregnancy can be the safest thing medically for a woman. Another pro to abortion is sadly, there are cases of incest and rape that happen to women and a pregnancy can occur from that. A women shouldn’t be forced to carry her attacker’s child. The things that could do to a woman’s mental health and well-being are astronomical. The third pro to abortion is sometimes people fall on hard times, or they already have kids and are struggling, and they know that bringing another child into this world that they know won’t be taken care of in the proper way, so the smart option for them financially and in this economy would be to terminate the pregnancy. It’s also important to not try to deny a women access to her reproductive care. If a woman is denied an abortion, the chances of her trying to go somewhere else or do it herself at home and potentially harm herself are higher, than if she is able to go to a clinic and get the help professionally. 

Even though there are pros to abortion, this is still a topic that is extremely controversial. Some people (especially religious people) think and believe that life starts at conception and that the termination of a pregnancy is murder. A big reason for people believing this is their religious views. One con for abortion is the belief that people have that abortion can just be used as what people refer to as a form of birth control and that if people have the option to have an abortion, they just won’t be personally responsible for the choices they make. Another con or concern of abortion is the effect that having an abortion could have on a woman’s mental and emotional health. Not everyone will have negative mental or emotional effects from it, some people worry that people will have grief, guilt, or even depression over their choice to have the abortion (no matter what the situation). Some people will try to argue and say that even if a woman doesn’t want to keep her baby that they should still carry the pregnancy to term and place for adoption. The issue with this is that pregnancy is very hard on a woman’s body mentally, physically, and emotionally. Pregnancy changes you. 

To conclude this paper, I want to say that I’m not trying to convince someone one way or the other. Abortion is an extremely personal decision, and a woman must make that choice for herself. I don’t think any man should be making or having any medical say so over a woman’s body, at all. It’s important to let a person keep their autonomy and feel like they have a say in the care they receive and what they do for their body. Being neutral and being able to understand both sides of abortion is pertinent for the public disclosure and development. 

If the fetus is a person with the rights of a person, it has a right to life, and abortions can only be justified when a life is in danger.  If the fetus is not a person with the rights of a person, then the state has no business telling women and doctors whether they can do an abortion.  So, how does a government in a country that has no official state religion decide when or if a fetus or embryo is a person with the same rights as any child already born and living?  From the 1970s to 2022, the implied but unstated right to privacy allowed decisions about abortions to be a matter for doctors and mothers to determine, only restricted by the viability of the fetus.  When the fetus would have a chance of surviving outside the womb, the state would consider it a person, and only allow abortions in extreme medical situations where the fetus would suffer and die quickly after birth, or the mother's life was at risk.  After 2022, the Supreme court decided that the right to privacy was not implied in the Constitution (my legal interpretation is that this was bad history and a bad interpretation of the Constitution).  Since the Court did not want to establish one standard of the status of a fetus for the whole country, they decided that each state could make a determination based on local sensibilities. 

Letter to a member of the House of Representatives urging support for abortion rights

 Dear Congresswoman Veronica Escobar,

I hope this letter finds you well. I am writing to you today to advocate for the preservation and expansion of abortion rights in our country. As a representative who has shown commitment to women's health and rights, your leadership is crucial in ensuring that all individuals have the autonomy to make informed choices about their own bodies.

To illustrate the significance of this issue, I want to share a hypothetical case that reflects the reality many women face. Imagine a young woman named Sarah, who is in her early twenties and has dreams of pursuing a career in medicine. She is a dedicated student, working part-time to support herself while attending college. One day, Sarah discovers she is pregnant. This news comes as a shock, as she had plans to finish her education and establish a stable career before starting a family.

Sarah is faced with a difficult decision. She knows that bringing a child into her current circumstances would not only derail her educational aspirations, but also place an immense financial burden on her and her family. After careful consideration, she decides that terminating the pregnancy is the best choice for her future and the future she hopes to provide for any potential children. However, Sarah lives in a state where access to safe and legal abortion services is severely restricted. She encounters numerous obstacles, including long wait times, financial barriers, and the stigma surrounding her decision.

This scenario highlights the importance of preserving abortion rights. Women like Sarah should have the agency to make decisions that align with their life goals, health, and circumstances. Access to safe and legal abortion is not just a matter of personal choice; it is a fundamental aspect of women's health care that impacts their ability to participate fully in society. When we restrict access to abortion, we disproportionately affect marginalized communities, leading to greater inequality and hardship.

Furthermore, I urge you to consider the values that underpin our society—values of compassion, empathy, and respect for individual autonomy. The ability to make choices about one's body is a cornerstone of personal freedom. By supporting abortion rights, you are affirming the belief that women deserve to have control over their reproductive health and the right to make decisions that are best for them and their families. It is essential to recognize that these choices are deeply personal and often made in the context of complex and challenging circumstances.

As you continue your vital work in Congress, I hope you will advocate for policies that protect and expand access to abortion services. Together, we can ensure that all individuals, regardless of their circumstances, have the right to make informed choices about their reproductive health. Thank you for your attention to this important issue, and for your ongoing commitment to the rights and well-being of women across our nation.

Sincerely, [Student]

I didn't realize that you had a connection to west Texas or El Paso, but Congresswoman Escobar is a progressive member of the House of Representatives who would be likely to sympathize with your request.

This is an example of an issue advocacy letter, rather than advocacy for a specific bill or policy, which is fine. In this case, you are urging a progressive Democrat to advocate for women having the right to choose abortion as a form of care in reproductive health. You specifically use an example of someone who would choose abortion because a child would interfere with life plans, and not out of some need to protect her health.  This is a good example to emphasize the importance of giving women autonomy and choice over their reproductive processes. 

You use three paragraphs to set up the moral narrative of a woman whose career ambitions would be blocked if she brought a pregnancy to term, and you emphasize how restrictions on abortion would delay Sarah's ability to receive care (in Texas, where Representative Escobar lives, the abortion would be entirely illegal, and a doctor performing the abortion could be charged with a first or second degree felony and fined $100,000 as a civil penalty). 

Your appeal is mainly centered around the argument that women have rights, autonomy, and the ability to make informed moral decisions about their own pregnancies. This is likely to be well-received by a liberal or progressive Democrat, such as Representative Escobar.

You do not thank Representative Escobar for her vote in favor of House Resolution 3755, the Women's Health Protection Act of 2021. I think that recognition of what she has done already would make the letter stronger.  It would be a good idea to ask Representative Escobar to support the introduction of a similar House resolution as soon as Democrats retake the House (presumably, in January of 2027), and also urge her to support Senate candidates who would vote for such a resolution in the 2026 Senate elections held in Texas, Ohio, North Carolina, Michigan, Maine, Georgia, Iowa, Nebraska, Kanas, Kentucky, and Alaska.  I think in an issue advocacy letter, you might say something about how this particular Representative could help sway voters in some of these states, and you might ask her to become active in campaigning in Latina communities in these states. 

The way the letter is constructed, and the fact that you have chosen to write to an Representative in Texas (El Paso), and the odd fact that the paper suggests there would be difficulties in getting an abortion, when in fact in Texas the abortion would be completely illegal, and the fact that the letter has no personal information that would be highly relevant to this specific Representative, and the fact that the letter is soulless and vapid and lacks human voice or any personality, all convince me that the letter was generated mostly or entirely by artificial intelligence.  In fact, I submitted the letter to three different applications for detecting writing done by artificial intelligence, and all three algorithms confirmed my suspicions. The letter was written by an artificial intelligence, and not written by the student who submitted it. 

Abortion Policy Editorial

In 2022, Roe v. Wade was overruled and therefore a right to an abortion was no longer guaranteed as a constitutional right. Abortion care is widely debated in America. It has been turned over to the states to determine if an abortion is lawful or not. It is within the power of the citizens of each state to vote on a decision either by supporting abortion rights through referenda or by voting for state legislatures or governors who will enact the sort of abortion laws they favor.

The power is back the the hands of the common people. The common people are the ones who need abortion care or know someone affected by abortion care. We the people must know why this aspect of healthcare is vital, and should be kept legal. In a 2004 study, 74% of participants had abortions due to an emotional and financial responsibility to individuals other themselves that was multi-dimensional (Biggs). These situations of pregnancy can force a dramatic life change, and some people know they will have an inability to afford a baby. Others may not want to be a single mother, or may not be ready for a child. The other significant justification could be focused on the fetal or maternal health as reason for abortion (Biggs). These are all reasonable explanations for the motive behind their decision. 

It is reasonable to have an abortion in America. Individuals who seek abortion for emotional and financial reasons may have lasting consequences if they do not receive abortion care. Those consequences may sometimes be wonderful, but sometimes they may be horrible. Many things can happen when a child is born in the wrong time of another’s life. Many cannot afford to meet on the expenses of a child. This can lead to the to reliance on community, state, and federal support systems. Child bearing reduces time for work or school, and may create a need to go part-time. This will also lead to a reliance on other supports and resources. It is reasonable to want to be able to work full time and support yourself. It is not selfish to want to be in a stable position in life. The values of self-reliance and self-sufficiency and personal autonomy can all be supported by decisions to end a pregnancy with an abortion. Being able to have access to abortion care tends to show an overall trend of less reliance on other support systems. 

Another reason for an abortion is concern for one’s health or the health of an infant. People may have an abortion for a variety of reasons. The other major reason for abortion is concern for one’s health or for the health of an infant. Sometimes the developing fetus can become an elevated risk for a mother to continue to carry. This could be the end of the mother if she gave birth, and sometimes the infant too. This can leave families motherless or without any guardians. In other cases, the developing fetus can have birth defects, developmental problems, structural abnormalities, and genetic disorders or mutations. All of these can lead to the decision to terminate the pregnancy as the birth could lead to early death or overall poor quality of life. Children deserve to have a healthy life with the same choices and opportunities everyone has. Children should not have to suffer their birth defects throughout what life they have until their eventual death.

Overall, Abortion care is widely debated in America. It has been turned over to the states to determine if an abortion is lawful or not, this means it is within the power of the citizens of each state to vote on a decision. The power is in our hands to make the choice.

Works Cited

Biggs, M Antonia, et al. “Understanding Why Women Seek Abortions in the US.” BMC Women’s Health, U.S. National Library of Medicine, 5 July 2013, pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3729671/. 

“Roe v. Wade.” Edited by Center for Reproductive Rights, Center for Reproductive Rights, 1 Apr. 2024, reproductiverights.org/roe-v-wade/.

        I wonder if you have anticipated the best argument in favor of states banning, restricting, and outlawing abortion or certain types of abortions. For me, the best argument in favor of abortion bans would be based on the value of preserving life, the right of people to have life, and the human and civil rights of unborn children.  This is a strong position if we accept the assumption that the value of life, the sacredness of life, or the rights of a person begin in the potential person in the mother’s womb at some early stage.  

To me, it seems the way to answer this position is to reject the assumption that the rights of life begin early in the pregnancy. Also, on what is this assumption that the sacredness or value of life begins early in the pregnancy, rather than at some later point, perhaps 10, 12, 15, or 20 weeks after fertilization?  It seems to me that it is based on religious beliefs that are specific to some religions, but not universally held by all religions, and not held by many people who do not profess religious beliefs.  So, by banning abortion, it seems to me that the government is stepping in and favoring the religious beliefs of specific sects and faiths over others.  That is also a violation of a fundamental value of government: to not impose one set of theological beliefs on everyone else. 

        The crux of the matter is that we have no consensus on when the person begins. Without a widely understood point in the gestation where we have a consensus that the unborn have the rights of those who have been born, we should defer to medical professionals and the moral conscience of the patients and doctors.

         Yet another problem is that when the state intervenes in this matter, the politicians are also stepping in between the mother and her physicians.  As I see it, relationships between patients and physicians must be respected, and the government should only in special cases make laws restricting the procedures that the medical profession can recommend or physicians implement. If a procedure is risky, offers little hope of benefit, and a strong probability of harm, I can accept government regulation of it to outlaw or discourage the remedy, but otherwise, it seems to me that physicians and their patients must decide for themselves what is medically necessary and what risks are worth taking and what the benefits are.  I do not like the government getting in the way of the relationships between physicians and patients.

        A further problem we have here with the regulation of abortion is that it seems to me that we do have a constitutional right to privacy.  The concept of “privacy” was widely understood and discussed at the time the constitution was written.  When specific rights were listed in the Constitution, the authors made it clear that the Constitution was not providing a complete list of all the rights held by citizens—the Constitution only mentioned a few out of many that were understood or rightly held by citizens. I believe the Court was correct in 1973 to suggest that laws forbidding abortion were infringements of a right implied but not specifically named in the Constitution. Laws allowing citizens to take away this right are unconstitutional.

        We have a democracy in which legislatures and the people can make any law they want to make up to a point, but in the end, the final say rests with our Constitution.  The Constitution is essentially our dictator, our monarch, our law that stands above the laws we can make in Congress or state legislatures or treaties (well, maybe treaties stand with the Constitution above all other laws, but they are easily abandoned, unlike the Constitution). It seems to me that the Supreme Court erred in 2022 with the Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization by failing to respect the right to due process, the right to privacy, and the right to be free from the establishment of a state religion.  The U.S. Constitution is the law that is enforced by coercion, and it forbids the secular power of government, which is the coercive force of the public, from forcing through threat of violence (police and legal action that could deprive people of their property or freedom) laws that reflect specific religious beliefs, or interference in the relationship between the medical profession—its physicians—and their patients, or violations of the rights to privacy we all hold.  

        It may be that there is another moral law that would in most cases make abortion a wrongful action, and in some religious codes of law abortion might be banned in some circumstances or approved in other circumstances, but in cases of religious law or personal moral choices, the government must stay out of these, and allow citizens to exercise their own autonomous and independent moral judgment. 

        

Abortion in America: An Analysis of Abortion Policy

 In 1973 the Supreme Court’s decision in Roe V. Wade ruled that abortion would be secured as legal across the United States. This meant that access to abortion would be guaranteed, no matter which state you resided in. The logic of the court was that a relationship between a doctor and patient (i.e. pregnant woman) was protected by a right to privacy, and the government had no business interfering in the medical decisions of a doctor and patient up to the point that a fetus had developed to near the point of “viability” when a premature birth could conceivably lead to a child who would survive. The idea of privacy rights was assumed based on the Constitution and documents from the time of the Constitution making it clear that the Bill of Rights in the Constitution were not a complete list of all rights enjoyed by citizens, and the unnamed rights could be assumed. As privacy was a concept that people at the time of the Constitution’s writing in the 1780s were well-aware of, and valued, it seemed to a majority of the court that the Constitution should be understood to protect abortion (at least in the first 23 weeks of gestation, until viability), and no state had any right to restrict this right. At the state level, state legislatures and governors could not overrule the federal ruling of a Supreme Court decision, so abortion was legal. In 2022 the Supreme Court overruled Roe V. Wade, bringing this decision back to the state level. Some states have their own policies on abortion, many dating back to pre–Roe V. Wade. These policies were not updated for decades because the federal ruling overruled any laws passed at the state level anyway. When Roe V. Wade was overturned June 24, 2022 in the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision, this put laws about abortion back into the hands of state governments, and many states had previous state level laws that came back into force. Some states had no laws preventing abortions; some states, like Michigan had archaic laws from 1931 banning all abortions no matter the reason. With the sudden overturn of Roe v Wade, Michigan was facing being forced into reverting to the prior laws. 

Abortion is a very controversial topic for many people. Some argue that it is considered murder and should be illegal. Some people believe that abortion should be legal up until 12 weeks, or 21 weeks. In some situations, it is believed to be acceptable to perform a live birth abortion. No matter the level of abortion, the topic is heated, and many people are either fiercely in favor of the right to abortion, also referred to as “pro-choice”, or against, referred to as “prolife”. 

For those who are pro-choice there are many arguments. The most common argument for choice is bodily autonomy. A person should have the right to choose what they wish to do with their own body. Many women find themselves pregnant despite their precautions. Sometimes this is due to failure of birth control; for others, it has been due to the lack of control of the situation, or consent; in other words, they are raped. Prior to Roe v. Wade, abortions were being performed “in back alleys”, or other unsafe conditions. Many times, these abortions would lead to serious complications for the woman, and commonly result in death. Making abortions illegal was not stopping them from happening, it was just forcing them to be completed in ways that were not regulated or considered safe. Another argument of many prochoice supporters is that a fetus is not viable until 24 weeks (with modern science this is closer to 21 weeks—about 5 months—now). If a baby were to be born prior to 21 weeks (about 5 months) they have slim-to-no chance of surviving. There are so many situations that lead a woman to seek abortions, and pro-choice supporters believe that it should only be up to the mother and her medical professional to decide which path is best for her situation. Abortions performed after the 18th or 19th week of gestation are almost always conducted because the fetus has a terrible health problem that will cause suffering and death within hours of birth, or because carrying the baby to term would create a strong possibility of death for the mother. 

On the other hand, pro-life supporters also have arguments. They believe the fetus has a heartbeat as early as 18 days (about 2 and a half weeks) after conception, and the baby has a right to life equal to the right enjoyed by persons who have been born, because the moment that a life becomes of concern to the state and worth protecting begins early, perhaps when the heart starts to beat. In some states people believe that once the baby is conceived, it has its own rights to have a chance of living a life. Conception is rarely defined—is conception the fertilization of the egg by the sperm (1st hour), the implantation of a blastocyst on the uterine epithelium (end of first week), or formation of the umbilical cord (end of the third week)?  These supporters believe it is not the mother’s place to decide whether the baby should be able to be born or not. Adoption is always an option for the mother. Pro-life supporters believe that a mother who does not want the pregnancy should carry out the pregnancy to full term and put the baby up for adoption. In this case, the mother would not have any legal responsibilities for the child, and the child also has a chance to live a long successful life. There are also medical risks that come with abortion for both the mother and baby. The mother knows that risks of the procedure, but the baby does not. Pro-life supporters believe it is not the place for anyone to put a child through the procedure of abortion, as this can cause pain and even lifelong consequences in the case of a failed abortion. 

With these arguments, we are left to look at the whole picture of abortion. There are many cases where abortion is performed safely and successfully ends the pregnancy. This is the best solution for some women. In other situations, there may be medical complications leaving the woman to still be pregnant and carry out a pregnancy of a baby who has serious medical defects due to the failed attempt at abortion. 

It is hard to determine when life begins. A heart may beat at 18 days (about 2 and a half weeks) after conception and the fetus still would not be viable to live outside the woman's body at that phase. Looking at these arguments, do we consider this to be the start of life? Or is the start of life when the fetus is viable outside the womb without the mother? Is it the woman's choice to decide what is best for her life and her body, or does she lose that right once she becomes pregnant because the zygote or embryo or fetus has a right to life that should take precedence over the mother’s right to choose whether to carry to term? 

To have an abortion performed one must seek medical attention. The medical provider will evaluate the situation, and in a state that allows abortions, if the gestation is prior to 24 weeks, they may proceed. Few doctors would proceed after 18 or 19 weeks gestation unless there were indications that the fetus had severe problems or the mother had health complications, as abortions used merely for birth control are usually conducted soon after a pregnancy is noticed.  The medical unit providing an abortion will make the woman partake in informed consent, which means the women will be given information about the procedure, the risks, and the benefits. Then providers also mention the alternate options. According to https://www.cdc.gov/reproductivehealth/data_stats/index.htm “93% of reported abortions in 2019 were performed at or before 13 weeks (about 3 months) of pregnancy, 6% were conducted between 14-20 weeks (about 4 and a half months) and 1% were performed at or after 21 weeks (about 5 months)”. The abortions that were performed at or after 21 weeks (about 5 months) were due to medical necessity. Many times, these abortions are performed due to some sort of medical reasoning that is usually life or death for the mother. 

TABLE 10. Number of reported abortions in 42 states, by known weeks of gestation* and reporting area of occurrence — selected reporting areas,† United States, 2019 

State/Area	Weeks of gestation							Total abortions reported by known gestational age
	≤6	7–9	10–13	14–15	16–17	18–20	≥21
	No. (%)§	No. (%)	No. (%)	No. (%)	No. (%)	No. (%)	No. (%)	No. (% of all reported abortions)¶
Alabama**	1,280 (21.3)	2,807 (46.8)	1,257 (20.9)	317 (5.3)	163 (2.7)	133 (2.2)	46 (0.8)	6,003 (99.9)
Alaska	292 (23.0)	639 (50.4)	271 (21.4)	64 (5.0)	—††	—††	0 (—)	1,269 (99.9)
Arizona	3,863 (29.5)	5,985 (45.7)	2,079 (15.9)	496 (3.8)	261 (2.0)	245 (1.9)	168 (1.3)	13,097 (100.0)
Arkansas**	479 (16.2)	1,265 (42.7)	862 (29.1)	150 (5.1)	82 (2.8)	97 (3.3)	28 (0.9)	2,963 (100.0)
Colorado	3,639 (40.4)	3,666 (40.7)	1,062 (11.8)	198 (2.2)	150 (1.7)	110 (1.2)	173 (1.9)	8,998 (100.0)
Connecticut	4,046 (45.7)	3,155 (35.7)	947 (10.7)	263 (3.0)	175 (2.0)	164 (1.9)	95 (1.1)	8,845 (96.1)
Delaware	536 (26.3)	1,071 (52.5)	328 (16.1)	73 (3.6)	16 (0.8)	6 (0.3)	9 (0.4)	2,039 (99.9)
Florida	52,850 (73.5)	11,641 (16.2)	4,843 (6.7)	973 (1.4)	691 (1.0)	699 (1.0)	217 (0.3)	71,914 (100.0)
Georgia	16,086 (43.6)	13,864 (37.6)	4,396 (11.9)	927 (2.5)	653 (1.8)	752 (2.0)	229 (0.6)	36,907 (100.0)
Hawaii	678 (33.9)	861 (43.0)	268 (13.4)	80 (4.0)	43 (2.1)	49 (2.4)	22 (1.1)	2,001 (99.9)
Idaho	493 (32.9)	707 (47.1)	257 (17.1)	37 (2.5)	—††	—††	—††	1,500 (99.1)
Indiana	1,924 (25.2)	4,055 (53.1)	1,618 (21.2)	9 (0.1)	8 (0.1)	17 (0.2)	6 (0.1)	7,637 (100.0)
Iowa	1,652 (46.3)	1,305 (36.6)	412 (11.6)	68 (1.9)	58 (1.6)	54 (1.5)	17 (0.5)	3,566 (100.0)
Kansas	2,761 (40.0)	2,722 (39.5)	921 (13.4)	195 (2.8)	121 (1.8)	137 (2.0)	37 (0.5)	6,894 (100.0)
Kentucky	1,302 (35.5)	1,493 (40.7)	550 (15.0)	116 (3.2)	65 (1.8)	109 (3.0)	29 (0.8)	3,664 (100.0)
Louisiana	2,815 (34.6)	3,567 (43.8)	1,274 (15.7)	273 (3.4)	173 (2.1)	38 (0.5)	0 (—)	8,140 (100.0)
Maine	595 (29.5)	996 (49.3)	317 (15.7)	48 (2.4)	33 (1.6)	31 (1.5)	0 (—)	2,020 (100.0)
Michigan	9,016 (33.0)	11,496 (42.1)	4,055 (14.9)	1,110 (4.1)	667 (2.4)	584 (2.1)	353 (1.3)	27,281 (99.8)
Minnesota	3,597 (36.7)	3,845 (39.2)	1,381 (14.1)	379 (3.9)	194 (2.0)	216 (2.2)	187 (1.9)	9,799 (98.6)
Mississippi	1,117 (35.0)	1,421 (44.5)	468 (14.7)	171 (5.4)	16 (0.5)	—††	—††	3,194 (100.0)
Missouri	86 (5.8)	496 (33.7)	505 (34.3)	130 (8.8)	87 (5.9)	112 (7.6)	55 (3.7)	1,471 (100.0)
Montana	599 (38.2)	628 (40.1)	211 (13.5)	51 (3.3)	34 (2.2)	34 (2.2)	11 (0.7)	1,568 (100.0)
Nebraska	976 (47.2)	683 (33.0)	284 (13.7)	62 (3.0)	46 (2.2)	16 (0.8)	0 (—)	2,067 (100.0)
Nevada	3,214 (38.6)	3,510 (42.1)	1,078 (12.9)	250 (3.0)	142 (1.7)	89 (1.1)	52 (0.6)	8,335 (99.1)
New Jersey§§	8,513 (39.3)	7,499 (34.6)	2,923 (13.5)	961 (4.4)	638 (2.9)	613 (2.8)	514 (2.4)	21,661 (97.7)
New Mexico	1,487 (42.7)	957 (27.5)	381 (10.9)	80 (2.3)	73 (2.1)	101 (2.9)	406 (11.6)	3,485 (88.4)
New York City	22,364 (44.9)	17,579 (35.3)	5,579 (11.2)	1,335 (2.7)	897 (1.8)	934 (1.9)	1,096 (2.2)	49,784 (100.0)
North Carolina	9,598 (33.9)	12,098 (42.8)	4,432 (15.7)	982 (3.5)	672 (2.4)	484 (1.7)	15 (0.1)	28,281 (99.4)
North Dakota	435 (38.8)	447 (39.9)	180 (16.1)	42 (3.7)	17 (1.5)	0 (—)	0 (—)	1,121 (100.0)
Ohio	5,523 (27.5)	9,070 (45.1)	3,558 (17.7)	848 (4.2)	531 (2.6)	477 (2.4)	95 (0.5)	20,102 (100.0)
Oklahoma	2,177 (43.6)	1,835 (36.8)	710 (14.2)	125 (2.5)	64 (1.3)	64 (1.3)	16 (0.3)	4,991 (99.9)
Oregon	4,064 (47.2)	2,924 (33.9)	949 (11.0)	241 (2.8)	129 (1.5)	149 (1.7)	160 (1.9)	8,616 (99.2)
Rhode Island	929 (44.4)	705 (33.7)	270 (12.9)	90 (4.3)	52 (2.5)	32 (1.5)	13 (0.6)	2,091 (99.6)
South Carolina**	1,063 (20.8)	1,970 (38.6)	1,740 (34.1)	298 (5.8)	8 (0.2)	13 (0.3)	9 (0.2)	5,101 (100.0)
South Dakota	64 (15.6)	224 (54.8)	—††	—††	0 (—)	—††	7 (1.7)	409 (98.8)
Tennessee	1,836 (18.9)	4,939 (50.9)	2,188 (22.5)	436 (4.5)	176 (1.8)	119 (1.2)	9 (0.1)	9,703 (99.8)
Texas**	22,356 (39.0)	22,721 (39.7)	8,232 (14.4)	1,870 (3.3)	957 (1.7)	838 (1.5)	301 (0.5)	57,275 (100.0)
Utah	1,018 (34.8)	1,185 (40.6)	478 (16.4)	92 (3.1)	51 (1.7)	67 (2.3)	31 (1.1)	2,922 (100.0)
Vermont	550 (46.0)	423 (35.4)	129 (10.8)	32 (2.7)	21 (1.8)	22 (1.8)	18 (1.5)	1,195 (100.0)
Virginia	7,917 (50.8)	5,215 (33.5)	1,938 (12.4)	121 (0.8)	131 (0.8)	170 (1.1)	90 (0.6)	15,582 (99.9)
Washington	7,046 (41.0)	6,768 (39.4)	2,061 (12.0)	420 (2.4)	265 (1.5)	273 (1.6)	363 (2.1)	17,196 (99.6)
West Virginia	325 (27.5)	536 (45.3)	235 (19.9)	58 (4.9)	18 (1.5)	—††	—††	1,183 (100.0)
Wyoming	18 (58.1)	12 (38.7)	—††	—††	0 (—)	0 (—)	0 (—)	31 (100.0)
Total	211,179 (42.9)	178,985 (36.4)	65,739 (13.4)	14,471 (2.9)	8,581 (1.7)	8,064 (1.6)	4,882 (1.0)	491,901 (99.6)¶¶