As campaign season heats up, candidates discuss the issues they think are most important to the voters. Republicans and Democrats differ on many policy positions, including immigration enforcement, government spending, and parental rights. While Democrats are making the “right” to abortion a major issue, Republicans are either remaining silent or sending mixed messages on the issue. As we have reported, the GOP removed nearly all pro-life language from their party platform. Earlier this month, Republican nominee Trump said he thinks “abortion has become much less of an issue. It’s a very — I think it’s actually going to be a very small issue.” But the Democrats intend to make it a huge issue both nationally and in many states.
After the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision which effectively overturned Roe v. Wade, many states enacted or reinstated pro-life laws. Currently, 14 states have restrictions on all stages of pregnancy. An additional 11 states have a variation of restrictions at 22 weeks gestation or below. However, some of these states could lose their life-saving provisions in the fall. Eight states — Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Maryland, Missouri, Nevada, New York, and South Dakota — will have a referendum on their ballots to enshrine abortion into their state constitutions and laws. Arkansas, Montana, and Nebraska are attempting to do the same in their states.
This is bad news for the cause of protecting life. The outcomes of similar ballot initiatives since Roe was overturned have been tragic. In 2022, seven states had pro-abortion-related referendums on their ballots and won all seven. The next year, Ohio proposed a pro-life ballot measure to raise the vote count threshold for state constitutional changes to a 60 percent majority rather than the current 51 percent. This would have stopped the abortion referendum that followed in November. Sadly, that also failed.
Because of these failures, many Republican candidates have wrongly concluded that expressing support for life is a “losing issue.” We know that ignoring the issue is tantamount to abandoning a basic tenant of our constitutional and God-given freedoms — that “all men are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” Senator James Lankford (R-OK) recently asserted that “this is exactly the time to keep talking about it.” On a Students for Life for America webcast, he said:
The way you win the argument is to keep talking about it, not to talk about it less… You don’t win hearts if you don’t talk about an issue. So, if we’re going to win votes one day, we’ve got to first win the hearts of people.
In fact, recent history proves that supporting the right to life can be a winning issue. In 2022, political candidates who made life a priority in their campaigns were victorious. Twelve governors who signed abortion bans won with massive margins. Those who signed “Heartbeat Bills” ensuring that life could not be snuffed out after a baby’s heart began to beat were reelected. One Senator who was in a tight race but didn’t shy away from the life issue was none other than Vice Presidential candidate J.D. Vance (R-OH). He defeated 10-term Congressman Tim Ryan (D-OH) by 53 percent of the vote to win the open Senate seat.
Arizona is one of the states voting to enshrine abortion in their state constitution in November following years of confusion. In 2022, the legislature passed a bill protecting babies after 15 weeks of gestation. But in April of this year, the Arizona Supreme Court reinstated an 1864 law that banned abortions in all circumstances except to save the life of the mother. Sadly, the state legislature quickly voted to repeal the 1864 law, leaving babies unprotected before 15 weeks. The referendum on the ballot will create a “fundamental right” to kill the unborn up until fetal viability, or about the 24th week of pregnancy, with exceptions after that if a health care professional decides it’s needed to “protect the life or physical or mental health of the pregnant individual.” In addition, the amendment will outlaw current law that requires an ultrasound before an abortion is done, as well as parental consent for minors.
Florida voters will also vote on whether to include the right to abortion until fetal viability in the state constitution. The state currently restricts abortion after six weeks, with exceptions to protect the life of the mother and in cases of rape and incest. The state will ask voters whether to protect abortion in the state constitution up to the point of fetal viability — usually about 24 weeks of pregnancy — or, in all cases, to protect the life of the pregnant person. It is the most populous state that will vote on the issue in November and the home state to Donald Trump. He has yet to say whether he will support the right to life in Florida although he has repeatedly said that he believes voters must decide the issue at the state level. Pro-life leadership requires speaking out to support the unborn and we encourage President Trump to do so.
Many of us never thought we would see Roe overturned in our lifetime. We should rejoice that the Supreme Court finally declared that our Constitution does not include a “right to abortion.” Yet, there is much work to do on both the state and federal levels to protect life, support women and babies, and change hearts and minds. The Democrats in Washington have repeatedly tried to pass laws enshrining unlimited abortion on demand at the federal level. Republicans have been successful in stopping these bills but are struggling to articulate a clear vision for life. At a minimum, the federal government must stop facilitating and funding abortion. The Biden-Harris Administration has expanded abortion access in every way possible including allowing Veterans Administration hospitals to perform abortions and paying for abortion travel expenses for the military. A recent Government Accountability report found that nearly $2 billion in federal taxpayer funding has been funneled to big abortion providers between FY2019-FY2021.
Early voting for the 2024 elections starts in a month in some states. The right to life will be on the ballot everywhere — implicitly or explicitly. Now is the time to get engaged and involved to protect the unborn. Join us at Eagle Council 52 in St. Louis on September 26-28 to learn more about this and other important issues we are facing. Contribute to Eagle Forum PAC to help elect committed pro-life politicians across the country. And please, pray for our nation, our leaders, and especially for women in crisis and their babies.
