Following an anemic performance in this week’s competitive elections, Republican party strategists are warning that the overturning of Roe has enabled Democrats to make gains – especially in states, such as Kentucky, where Republicans have passed near-total abortion bans without exceptions for rape or incest.
Steven Law, who heads up a McConnell-aligned super PAC, said his party needs to take notice of the shifting dynamic in the electorate.
"Republicans have a continued problem with the politics of abortion, and we've been saying since June that the party going to have to start to deal with that more effectively or we're going to have more election nights like last night," he said Wednesday on Fox.
NBC reports three GOP sources say party operatives are urging Republicans to make it clear to voters that they don’t favor a nationwide ban on all abortions and instead advocate for “reasonable exceptions on late-term abortions,” including for rape and incest.
In Kentucky, former Beshear challenger Daniel Cameron appeared to waver on exceptions later in the contest but never expressed a personal conviction regarding them in debates.
A poll released just prior to the election showed a slim majority — about 55% — of Kentuckians saying they are not in favor of the state’s current abortion rules with no exceptions apart from life of the mother or disabling injury.
