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Tuesday’s decision by Kansans is a reminder that the post-Roe v. Wade reality will be a difficult road.
Voters in the red state rejected an amendment to remove the right to abortion from the Kansas Constitution, delivering a blow to the pro-life movement. But the reality in Kansas is a product of the very thing the overturning of Roe allows. Federalism is a good thing. It also means some voters and legislatures will work toward protecting abortion, though other states will enact more abortion restrictions.
Either way, the defeat of Roe and Casey v. Planned Parenthood never meant that abortion is going away. The pro-life movement has plenty of work to do.
The recent victory at the Supreme Court and knowledge that Kansas is a red state perhaps gave pro-lifers more confidence than there should have been. The abortion industry is powerful, energized, and angry. It remains to be seen if that will affect the midterm elections or the 2024 presidential election. But for now, it’s enough to halt the momentum so many pro-life people have felt since Roe was overturned.
Abortion supporters in Kansas had the benefit of close proximity to the Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization and the fearmongering that has been near constant since then. The idea that the Dobbs decision banned abortion across the board, and for good, is difficult misinformation to counter. This is the pro-abortion strategy: Lie about what the abortion landscape will look like post-Roe and gain traction against any pro-life campaigns. Immediately following the Dobbs decision, the number of women in Kansas who were registered to vote jumped.
And on Tuesday, an enormous number of voters came to the polls. As reported by the Washington Post, the total was “over 25 percent more votes than were cast in the state’s Republican and Democratic Senate primaries. And it’s about two-thirds of the number of votes cast in the 2020 presidential election.”
Voters are intensely connected to and motivated by the abortion issue, no matter their perspective. That emotion is highest, however, among those who erroneously view Dobbs as taking away from women and their freedoms. Well-funded messaging makes an impact, no matter how inaccurate it is.
The fallout since the Dobbs decision demonstrates the need for a robust pro-life movement. The yearning for a post-Roe generation is realized. That is worth celebrating. But more than anything, Dobbs is just another step in the right direction. Creating and fostering a culture of life in the United States is still the ultimate goal.
One day, abortion should be unthinkable. It can only get that way if those in the pro-life community recognize the uphill climb ahead and the need for women who face unwanted or unplanned pregnancies to feel just as valued as their babies. The same women need tangible help when making the decision to keep their children. All of these objectives are now facing an onslaught of hysteria from the abortion industry, which will continue to frame women as more oppressed than ever before.
In November, California, Kentucky, Montana, and Vermont will join Kansas in proposing measures that address language in their state constitutions or individual statutes. Roe was a nationwide reality for nearly 50 years, and the fight for life never wavered then. It shouldn’t waver now.
Kimberly Ross (@SouthernKeeks) is a contributor to the Washington Examiner’s Beltway Confidential blog and a columnist at Arc Digital.
