Cover Image: I Voted Sticker, via Time Magazine
Imagine going to the casino. You walk in, walk over to the roulette table, and put one thousand dollars on thirty-six red. It spins and spins, and you contemplate this decision. Images flash through your head of all the things you could have done with that money: fed yourself, paid rent, et cetera. Then, by some miracle, it actually lands on thirty-six red. You now have thirty-five thousand dollars in chips. Then, in a brilliant act of idiocy, you let it ride and lose it all within the span of sixty seconds. That is what happened to the Republic Party on Tuesday.
After decades upon decades of campaigning, Roe v. Wade (the Supreme Court’s landmark decision on abortion) was overturned by the same political body that allowed it in the first place. Abortion is now once again a state-by-state issue, something that the conservatives in charge are big fans of. However, the same cannot be said about the average American voter, as seen in the results of the November 7th elections.
Abortion was a huge issue across the country, making a major political contribution to the ballot and those running for office. Both ballot questions and who got elected were in part (if not in whole) determined by the issue of abortion, especially in three major conservative strongholds: Virginia, Kentucky, and Ohio.
In Ohio, roughly 56% of voters decided to enshrine abortion rights in the state constitution, with some Republicans joining the cause (as neither major American political party is a monolith). This dealt a blow to national Republicans as well as the conservative state government, as it turns out there is a decent block of voters who want a moderate solution on the issue of abortion, rather than completely banning it or having it be available no matter what. In Kentucky and Virginia on the other hand, this issue led to the election and removal of several politicians.
The issue of abortion was used as a political tool by incumbent governor Andy Beshear during his campaign, with him painting his Republican opponent as an extremist on the issue. Beshear galvanized his base, and as such won re-election with a few points over the fifty percent margin.
Democrats also secured victory in regards to the elections in Virginia. The party maintained control of the upper house of Virginia’s legislature and secured control of the lower house, guaranteeing that no legislation further limiting abortion rights would make it to Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin’s desk.
All across the country, American voters showed that even in Republican-controlled and conservative majority states, abortion is a more complicated issue than it seems. People on both sides of the aisle have a variety of opinions on it, and as such are not willing to give it up without a fight. Next year, the United States will see how this battle plays out on a national scale. Grab your popcorn, because it is going to be an entertaining election cycle.
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