So how many pro-life referendums have we lost? Some states were predictable, like California and Vermont. However, Montana, Kansas, Kentucky and Ohio should make you think that perhaps the Republican Party is not sending the right message on this issue. Ohio becoming a reliably red state could be a turning point where almost 57 percent voters approved a measure guaranteeing abortion rights in their state constitution. This is a state that Donald Trump won easily in 2016 and 2020. Without vigorous GOP support, you can’t get 57 percent here for anything. The same thing happened in Kansas.
Although the battles were different, Kansas introduced a right-to-life amendment to the state constitution and a immense portion of GOP voters rejected that provision, which is why 59 percent of Jayhawkers rejected that ballot option. True, it’s not because Kansas is a haven for abortion rights: it has no funding, a 22-week ban, and parental consent laws. My hunch was that most voters in Kansas thought their state had handled the abortion issue. Ohio’s vote to codify pro-abortion laws as constitutional law marks fresh ground.
This was not lost on participants in the third Republican debate, but the cracks were noticeable. The Republican Party is against abortion, but the policy question remains unclear and it is costing us the election. We have members of the Republican Party calling for a series of cut-off periods for abortion in the form of 6-, 15-, or 20-week bans. However, this leads to supporters of a total ban threatening Republicans with primary chaos who support, for example, a 15-week ban for being too moderate.
Dobbs he didn’t ban abortion – he returned that power to the states so their people could decide about it. Since then, every state, red and blue, has rejected pro-life measures. It’s gotten to the point where some conservative commentators, like Ann Coulter, are warning that pro-lifers could destroy the GOP:
Pro-lifers intend to destroy the Republican Party.
In addition to Tuesday night’s loss in Ohio, Gov. Glenn Youngkin lost substantial in Virginia – to pro-life zealots.
A 15-week abortion limit would be fine with VA voters, but Republicans couldn’t promise to stop there…
— Ann Coulter (@AnnCoulter) November 8, 2023
I’m not sure about this, but the original antics are turning into electoral sepsis that is extremely distasteful to most voters, even Republicans. Pro-life is a cancer that is killing the party, it is exaggerated. Still, abortion as an issue will galvanize Democrats to get out and vote this cycle, even with a Democratic president who is widely unpopular. I am correcting my opinion on how this issue would play out. There is time to fix this, but it will be a mess. I will say that from our side, although a total ban is the purest thing in the context of pro-life policy, it is politically impossible.
