Roe v. Wade - How Will it Affect the 2024 Elections?
Article by Alisha Sachdeva, Staff Writer
The 2024 Presidential elections are getting closer and all signs point to another Trump vs. Biden ballot. Candidates are taking stances on controversial topics, one of the most prominent being abortion rights in America. With the overturning of Roe v. Wade in 2022 and protests all over the country, abortion will have a massive weight in the elections.
Starting with some background, in June 2022, the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, ending the Constitutional right to seek legal abortion care. The decision to ban abortion was left up to individual states, expanding the gap between liberal and conservative states. Currently, 14 states have either banned abortion or have no available abortion care, ending the rights of millions of Americans nationwide, and leaving many angered.
As recently as March, there have been protests in the capital from both the anti-abortion and pro-life teams. People fill the gates of the capital with creative signs and props. These upcoming elections leave voters asking what the candidates will do with the situation. How will Roe v. Wade affect the upcoming election and what are the candidate's stances?
Back in the 2016 elections, Trump ran with a promise to only nominate judges who were anti-abortion if he was elected. Claiming he was “proud” to have a part in overturning Roe v. Wade. Vice President, Kamala Harris, shot back at his remark saying, “Proud that women across our nation are suffering? Proud that women have been robbed of a fundamental freedom? Proud that doctors could be thrown in prison for caring for their patients? That young women today have fewer rights than their mothers and grandmothers? How dare he.” The Biden administration has started to use Trump's comments to their advantage traveling across the US and highlighting stories of women who have had to move states to get abortions.
More recently, Trump said that he would be open to a 16-week abortion ban, sparking discussions everywhere. In the past couple of months, Trump had avoided taking a clear stance on the issue, claiming he wanted to “make everyone happy.” However, in one of his latest private discussions, he was asked about a ban and responded, “Know what I like about 16? It’s even. It’s four months.” While this might make some voters happy, some were angered about this potential ban. So Trump has a somewhat clear stance, what has Biden promised to do with the situation?
Biden has vowed to bring rights back if he is elected. In his last State of the Union address, he promised to “restore Roe v. Wade as the law of the land again.” Pushing toward reproductive freedom is going to boost the polls for Democrats when the elections roll around. This is why they are using this topic to their advantage, accounting for new actions and trying to speak about the topic more often. Not long ago they introduced an act to increase affordability and access to Contraceptive pills for women.
The end goal is for voters to decide which candidate will deal with the situation of Roe v. Wade best. Until the elections, the Biden administration will keep working to introduce new acts and laws and Trump will speak about how he will change abortion in America. Either way, it will lead to a change in abortion in the US.
Sources:
AP News - Democrats believe abortion will motivate voters in 2024. Will it be enough?
HUFFPOST - Donald Trump Says He's 'Proud' To Have Overturned Roe v. Wade
NY Times - Trump Privately Expresses Support for a 16-Week Abortion Ban
THE HILL - Harris blasts Trump for saying he was ‘proud’ to end Roe: ‘How dare he'