Abortion taking center stage in NC Dems' 2022 campaigns

As the 2022 midterm election nears, Democrats in North Carolina and nationally are sharpening their focus on abortion as a top issue for voters this November, particularly among women and swing voters.

That move is bolstered by recent polling showing voters in the state are overwhelmingly opposed to total or near-total abortion bans, though many say they would support some restrictions. It’s also bolstered by the failure of a Kansas referendum to allow abortion restrictions as well as a handful of recent special elections in which Democrats focusing on the abortion issue have performed better against Republicans than predicted.

When Republican North Carolina U.S. Rep. Ted Budd — a candidate for the state’s open U.S. Senate seat — signed onto a U.S. House bill Tuesday seeking to ban abortion at 15 weeks, North Carolina Democrats and third-party groups were quick to see it as an advantage they could capitalize on.

On a press call Thursday morning, state Democratic chairwoman Bobbie Richardson called out Budd’s co-sponsorship of H.R. 8814 as “further cementing that, if elected to the U.S. Senate, he will vote to take away women's rights and freedoms to make their own medical decisions.”

As of Thursday morning, 86 Republicans had signed on H.R 8814, including five from North Carolina: Budd and U.S. Reps. Virginia Foxx, Patrick McHenry, Dan Bishop and David Rouzer.

Richardson said she wasn’t surprised Budd’s name was on the list, pointing out his earlier opposition to abortion, potentially even in cases of rape, incest, or the life of the mother. “Someone with that adamant attitude about women and their right to choose, it does not surprise me that he would” support the bill.

As filed, H.R. 8814 would allow very narrowly tailored exceptions for rape, incest and the life of the mother, but not the health of the mother. Violations could bring down a prison sentence of up to five years, as well as civil lawsuits by the woman or her family.

Richardson predicted that Budd’s position would alienate women and swing voters, noting that the issue has motivated voters in other races around the country.

“If we look at what happened in Kansas and Alaska, I think we can say that this is as important an issue, if not a more important issue, than inflation,” Richardson said.

“Inflation is something that goes and comes under any president,” Richardson said. “Once you force a woman to have a child that she and her family and her doctor may have decided that it may not be safe for her or it may not be something that they are ready for at that time, that is a lifelong decision.”

In a statement, Budd spokeswoman Samantha Cotten said, “We’ve always been transparent that Ted is pro-life and he has previously supported similar pain-capable legislation."

Cotten added, “Cheri Beasley thinks America is a better place if a healthy baby can be aborted one minute before a full-term birth, a position wildly out-of-step with North Carolinians.”

Jillian Riley with Planned Parenthood Votes, the political action arm of Planned Parenthood, called that “flat-out untrue” and “frankly irresponsible.”

“There's no such thing as an abortion up until birth,” Riley said.

She noted that fetal viability is typically at 23 to 24 weeks. But North Carolina allows for abortions after that time in cases of a medical emergency to save the life of the mother.

Riley said, “It's important to remember that that's just not how abortion care works, and that abortions are best as described, left up to the pregnant person and their doctor to decide.”

“North Carolina Republicans will pass an abortion ban so cruel and extreme, it won't even contain exceptions for rape or incest,” Cooper says in the ad, which is expected to air in the Wilmington area. “As your governor, I'll veto it, but I need enough senators to uphold it. Marcia Morgan will. That's why I'm supporting her. And I need you to support her, too.”

In his polling memo, Shumaker urged Republicans to find “middle ground” on the issue.

“Democrats will try to use the issue to fix their voter turnout problem and make inroads with some suburban GOP voters,” he wrote. “If we help the Democrats fix their voter intensity problem as they helped fix ours in 2018, then supermajorities become simple majorities, and statewide races tighten up extensively.”

Western Carolina University political scientist Chris Cooper said he was surprised by Budd’s decision to co-sponsor the bill, given that many Republicans, including Budd, have seemed to be moving away from the abortion issue on the campaign trail for the general election.

“Strategically, it’s a real head-scratcher,” Cooper said. “To see him sign onto a bill that would essentially ban abortions nationally after the 15th week was a big shock and seems to run counter to what was the prevailing strategy up to this point.”

Cooper said the move could help Democratic candidate Cheri Beasley with suburban voters that will likely be the key to this election.

“This Senate race is as tight as any in the country,” Cooper said. “Finally, the national media has figured this out. Finally, the national parties are starting to figure it out. And so Cheri Beasley and the Democrats are absolutely going to seize on this moment, and put this on every text message, phone call, flyer and billboard they can.”