cover of episode Why Abortion Rights Won Even as Kamala Harris Lost

Why Abortion Rights Won Even as Kamala Harris Lost

2024/11/12
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Key Insights

Why did abortion rights groups focus on ballot measures in 2024?

Abortion rights groups focused on ballot measures to restore and protect abortion access in states with bans, leveraging the success seen in Kansas in 2022.

How did the messaging around abortion rights change in the 2024 campaigns?

Campaigns shifted to emphasize abortion as health care, highlighting real-life consequences of bans, such as women unable to get necessary medical care during pregnancy.

Why did Kamala Harris's campaign not benefit as expected from the abortion rights ballot measures?

Voters were able to support abortion rights without aligning with Harris's broader agenda, splitting their votes between local measures and the presidential race.

What role did Donald Trump play in neutralizing the abortion rights issue for his campaign?

Trump effectively neutralized the issue by assuring voters he would not impose a national ban, focusing the debate on state-level decisions.

How did the 2024 election results impact the perception of feminism and abortion rights?

The results highlighted a decoupling of abortion rights from feminism, as campaigns focused on health care rather than women's autonomy, leaving feminism in an uncertain place.

Chapters

The episode explores the paradox of abortion rights winning in several states while Kamala Harris, who championed those rights, lost the presidential election.
  • Ten states had amendments on the ballot to establish abortion rights in their state constitutions.
  • Seven out of ten states approved these amendments, marking a significant victory for abortion rights groups.
  • The success of these ballot measures highlights a shift in how Americans think about abortion, framing it more as a health care issue.

Shownotes Transcript

Last Tuesday, voters across the country approved measures to protect abortion rights, while rejecting the presidential candidate who claimed to champion those same rights.

Kate Zernike, who covers the issue for The Times, explains that gap and what it tells us about the new politics of abortion.

Guest: Kate Zernike), a national reporter at The New York Times, writing most recently about abortion.

Background reading: 

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