Over a year ago the Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade (1973) in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization (2022), ending a 50-year national right to an abortion.
In the past year Dobbs has had significant legal and political implications across the country. In fact, America’s current state of politics may not be where it currently is had it not been for Dobbs.
With powers on abortion now delegated to states, the doors opened for two legal wolrds in America: one without abortion rights, and one with. If a woman sought to get an abortion, the end result would be heavily determined by the laws of where she lives.
As soon as the Supreme Court ended the constitutional right to an abortion, Republican states across the nation began to impose bans or restrictions. According to the PBS Newshour, 25 states have either banned or restricted abortion access.
Women living in these states have to travel outside of their state borders to get an abortion in states where it is protected.
In contrast, Democratic states began to implement laws that have expanded the protections of abortion. The other 25 states along with Washington D.C. have implemented protections, ranging from new laws as well as amendments to state constitutions.
In a pre-Dobbs poll by the Data for Progress, 48% of American voters said the economy was their main priority while only 7-12% said it was abortion. However, following the Dobbs decision, the 2022 midterm elections spoke differently.
In the aftermath of Dobbs, Democrats immediately highlighted abortion as a key issue in the 2022 midterms. Meanwhile, Republicans focused on other issues such as the economy and inflation.
The Dobbs decision also changed the way voters prioritized issues. According to CNN, while inflation remained the top issue for voters at 31%, an almost identical amount of 27% said abortion was their biggest concern. Amongst that 27%, voters overwhelmingly selected Democratic candidates.
With the nationwide protection of abortion now eliminated, women who were pro-abortion looked to Democrats, many of whom promised to protect abortion rights. As a result, many of these women voted for the Democrats, leading to the party performing unusually well for a midterm election.
Normally, opposition parties thrive in the time around the midterms, as Republicans were hoping to do so. However, Democrats were able to seize on Dobbs and turn it into an issue that boosted their political platform.
The AP reported that Democrats also did exceedingly well in state elections such as Minnesota and Michigan. Better performance in the states has enabled them to pass abortion protections in Democratic states. For example, after the Midterms, Michigan passed sweeping protections that overturned prior state laws restricting abortion.
For me, it’s apparent that before Dobbs, abortion was not a key issue in elections for Democrats or Republicans given its legal precedence. But now, it has served as a major political boost for Democrats while Republicans are finding ways to address the issue in a way that won’t spark anger from their voters.
The question remains a year later, will abortion continue to play a role in American politics?
The drastic change in precedence for 50 years undoubtedly had a dramatic impact in the months following the Supreme Court’s decision. But whether or not that momentum will keep up is yet to be seen.
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