Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel said the first GOP presidential debate forced Republicans to acknowledge the importance of taking a stance on abortion restrictions, as the party continues to suffer setbacks in red states over abortion limits heading into 2024.
Each candidate who attended the debate spoke to their individual state record on abortion. While all stated they are anti-abortion, they disagreed over a 15-week federal ban. Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley and former Vice President Mike Pence were at odds over the issue, with Pence advocating for all candidates to support a national abortion ban. Haley, on the other hand, cautioned her fellow Republicans for making promises to voters they can't keep.
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"No Republican president can ban abortions, any more than a Democrat president could ban all those state laws," Haley responded. "Don't make women feel like they have to decide on this issue when you know we don't have 60 Senate votes."
McDaniel said in an interview with Fox News on Thursday morning that the candidates' open discussion of abortion is an important step forward for the party.
"I was very pleased to see them talk about abortion,” McDaniel said. “Democrats used that in 2022 ... If our candidates aren’t able to find a response and put out a response, we’re not going to win. They’re going to do it again in 2024. And I thought all of them did a really good job on that.”
McDaniel said the candidates came together to push Democrats as the extreme party on abortion.
“I do think they all had a consensus that as a country we should all say when a baby feels pain at 15 weeks, we should all agree that this is a bridge too far and we should not be having abortions,” McDaniel said. “And then they called out the extremism of the Democrats, who support due date abortions and gender selected abortions.”
However, Haley also took a different route than her opponents, arguing that Republicans need to find consensus on the topic, particularly as it is set to be a key issue on the minds of voters heading into 2024. She drew heavy applause when she stated that contraception needs to be available and women should not be criminalized for having an abortion, a tactic that could pull independents and moderate Republicans over to her side.
Wednesday's debate highlighted the disunity among Republicans when it comes to abortion. A poll from Sienna College and the New York Times shows that 36% of Republican voters support abortion being legal in some capacity, with 57% believing that the procedure should be mostly or always illegal.
Abortion will be a significant hurdle for Republicans to overcome in 2024 — their abortion stances may help them rise in the primary, but when faced with general election voters, they could face pushback from moderate GOP and independent voters.
The discussion on abortion has plagued the GOP as several red states attempt to block abortion access — some with little success.
In Ohio, voters recently rejected Issue 1, keeping a simple majority to amend the state constitution in place. It will make it easier for an abortion rights constitutional amendment on the ballot this November to gain approval.
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Kansas voters rejected a constitutional amendment in August 2022 that would have removed the right to an abortion from the state constitution.
Several other states are currently weighing abortion rights amendments for the 2024 election season, including Arizona, Arkansas, Nebraska, North Dakota, and Oklahoma.