Abortion rights won out in several key races in Ohio, Virginia, and Kentucky on Election Day, signaling support for abortion in the 2024 election and a need for the anti-abortion movement to regroup for next year.
Ohioans voted on Tuesday to add a comprehensive reproductive rights amendment to their state constitution, enshrining the right to abortion and placing strict restrictions on the state legislature’s capacity to regulate the procedure.
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Advocates of the amendment rallied support for it in response to a measure signed by Gov. Mike DeWine (R-OH) to ban abortion after six weeks gestation, which had not been enforced due to continued legal challenges.
In Virginia, Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R-VA) branded the off-cycle elections for the House and Senate as a referendum on his leadership and as an opportunity to gain enough support for a ban on abortion at 15 weeks gestation, the point at which a fetus can feel pain in the womb.
Democrats in the purple state were able to flip the state House and maintain control of the Senate, both by slim majorities.
Meanwhile, incumbent Gov. Andy Beshear (D-KY) was able to leverage the anti-abortion record of his opponent, Daniel Cameron, who, during the campaign, flip-flopped on his position of adding rape and incest exceptions to the state’s total ban on abortion.
Abortion rights have become a larger topic in state-level elections since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June 2022, making the regulation of the procedure a state matter. The 2022 midterm elections were also dominated by abortion, with strong anti-abortion Republicans losing more ground in the House and Senate than anticipated.
Anti-abortion advocates have already taken note that their strategy needs to change ahead of the 2024 elections to advance their policy goals.
My statement on the tragic passing of Issue 1 in Ohio:
The truth will ultimately prevail. The truth always trumps temporary political victories. What is the truth? Human life begins at the moment of fertilization. Abortion is an act of homicidal violence that kills a living…
— Lila Rose (@LilaGraceRose) November 8, 2023
“The pro-life movement must adapt to win,” said Lila Rose, president of the anti-abortion network Live Action. “We have to throw out the old playbook and dive headfirst into a strategy that can win the hearts and minds of the American people and translate into electoral victory.”
Anti-abortion group SBA Pro-Life America President Marjorie Dannenfelser reacted similarly, saying that activists advocating anti-abortion candidates or against pro-abortion ballot measures in the 2024 cycle “will need to devote more resources to compassionate pro-life messages for women and their children, combating the campaign of fear from the other side.”
Democratic politicians across the board celebrated Tuesday’s victory.
Today, voters in Ohio approved a constitutional amendment to protect reproductive freedom. They stood with the majority of Americans who believe that politicians should not interfere with a woman’s right to make decisions about her own body.
Read my full statement: pic.twitter.com/WLGYYjeQwt
— Vice President Kamala Harris (@VP) November 8, 2023
“Voters turned out to safeguard reproductive rights and prevent extremists from enforcing an abortion ban that would harm women and criminalize doctors,” Vice President Kamala Harris said in response to the Ohio amendment. “Since the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, people across the country have voted to defend reproductive freedom every time it has appeared on the ballot.”
“Abortion is a kitchen table issue,” Sen. Tina Smith (D-MN) said late on Tuesday night. “Republicans don’t have a messaging problem, they have a policy problem.”
In September, a group of Republican senators led by Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) held a closed-door meeting to discuss a strategy for messaging on abortion restrictions during the 2024 election cycle.
The consensus drawn from that meeting highlighted the need to move away from simple terms of being for or against abortion and toward more specific policy proposals.
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Rose said that emphasizing the science of fetal development will be crucial.
“Human life begins at fertilization,” Rose said. “Abortion is a murderous act of violence. Embracing the truth with courage is the first step toward the next political victory.”
