A pro-abortion attendee stands during the first day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center on Aug. 19, 2024, in Chicago. / Credit: Andrew Harnik/Getty Images
CNA Staff, Nov 7, 2024 / 16:30 pm (CNA).
Here is a roundup of abortion policy-related news this week.
Americans reject Democrats’ abortion agenda
Pro-life advocates are calling attention to the significance of the defeat of a 2024 Democratic presidential candidacy that was largely centered on abortion.
“Americans have rejected the Democrats’ no-limits abortion agenda,” Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America President Marjorie Dannenfelser said in a post-election press release.
In the run-up to this year’s election, Vice President Kamala Harris amplified claims that women are dying from Republican abortion laws, though no state prohibits life-saving care for a pregnant woman. Harris vowed to restore Roe v. Wade-era standards and firmly rejected religious exemptions in federal abortion laws.
Harris’ running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, is known for the late-term abortion law he signed in Minnesota that has no limits on abortion at any stage of pregnancy. Dannenfelser noted that for her organization, its “paramount goal” in this election was “to deny Democrats the chance to pass a national all-trimester abortion mandate and wipe out protections for babies and women in all 50 states.”
Meanwhile, during the campaign now-President-elect Donald Trump repeatedly pledged not to institute a national ban on abortion. He also emerged as an outspoken advocate of in vitro fertilization (IVF), a process designed to help infertile couples have children but creates many embryos that are discarded during the process.
During the two candidates’ sole presidential debate, Trump said abortion laws should be left up to the states. He also pledged to consider reimplementing a ban on taxpayer funding for abortion overseas and providing religious exemptions related to any government program requiring health insurance coverage of IVF treatments.
Live Action attributes pro-life success to ‘effective education’
Pro-life forces prevailed in Florida and Nebraska in this week’s election despite being heavily outspent by their pro-abortion opponents in both states. In Florida, supporters of an abortion amendment had a campaign war chest of more than $118 million. In contrast, the principal pro-life campaign committees that organized in opposition to the amendment had only $12 million in funding.
Nebraska was the only state to have two competing abortion ballot measures. According to Ballotpedia, the organizing campaign in support of the pro-abortion amendment had $13 million total in funding, while campaigners for the pro-life measure received $11 million in contributions.
Lila Rose, founder and president of Live Action, cited “resources” to provide “effective education” as reasons for the success of pro-life causes in Florida, Nebraska, and South Dakota.
“Life wins when there are enough resources to ensure voters know the truth and when we have political leadership that boldly leads,” Rose said Wednesday.
Exit polls: Abortion was not a top issue in this election
Exit polls revealed that abortion was less of a priority than other issues for voters in this week’s election. Vice President Kamala Harris ran heavily on the abortion issue and lost her bid for the presidency.
Among five issues (foreign policy, abortion, the economy, immigration, and the state of democracy), exit polls by NBC News indicated that only 14% chose abortion as the most important issue to them in voting for the president.
Of that 14%, 74% were Democrats while 25% were Republicans. Top issues were the economy (32%), mostly for Republicans, and the state of democracy (34%), mostly for Democrats.
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