Republicans and pro-lifers suffered crushing defeats on Tuesday. A Democrat won re-election as governor in the very red state of Kentucky. In Virginia, Governor Glenn Youngkin will now face a completely hostile legislature as Democrats took back the House while holding on to the Senate. And voters in Ohio passed Issue 1, a constitutional amendment making abortion the law of the land there. If there was a bright spot for conservatives, it was in Mississippi, where the incumbent Republican governor was granted a second four-year term.
Gary Bauer, chairman of Campaign for Working Families, points out that none of these off-year elections were nationalized elections.
"Nobody voting for the Virginia House and Virginia Senate were thinking about the economy under Joe Biden, Joe Biden's ill health and mental limitations, Joe Biden's failed foreign policy, [or] Joe Biden's deficit spending," Bauer tells AFN. "None of those things were on the ballot in any of these races. Full vote on the basis of what is going on in their state and their local community are the issues they care about."
The long-time conservative activist expects national issues to dominate the elections next November. "I just want to urge caution that thinking that what happened in a couple of states in an off-year election is going to tell us what happens 12 months from now. The one doesn't follow the other," he argues.
GOP needs to go on the offensive
Looking at the results from Tuesday, conservative columnist and commentator Robert Knight, who lives in Virginia, says the Republican Party clearly has a problem with communicating its vision to voters and linking issues to Democrats.
"Apparently the elections, not only in Virginia but all over the U.S., are focusing on abortion – and as long as Republicans allow that to be the case, they're going to keep losing elections," he predicts. "[That's] because the Democrats have framed [the issue of abortion] in a dishonest way, saying 'Republicans are the extremists and we're the moderates' – when [in fact] it's actually the reverse of that."
The GOP, he says, tends to assume a "defensive posture" – which he considers a mistake.
"The old saying was that Republicans' campaign strategy boils down to 'Republicans: We're not as bad as you think.' And the updated version of that seems to be 'Republicans: We're not as extreme on abortion as you think.' Now that's a losing argument," says the Washington Times columnist.
MS turning blue? Blabber on …
The Magnolia State was about the only bright spot in the 2023 off-year elections for the GOP as incumbent Governor Tate Reeves put down a challenge by Democrat Brandon Presley, who had hoped the backing from liberal, out-of-state donors would sweep him to victory and turn Mississippi blue.
Mississippi-based political activist Jameson Taylor, director of policy and legislative affairs at AFA Action, says all the talk of turning the Mississippi blue proved to be just that. He contends voters endorsed the steady hand of Tate Reeves.
"I think in particular people appreciated how Tate Reeves handled things during the COVID pandemic," he offers. "And they're concerned about having a Democratic governor who's going to govern like Joe Biden – especially if we have another multi-year pandemic, which is what healthcare experts at the White House are talking about already. Also, voters rejected Presley's platform, which was basically to expand Medicaid and to expand government-provided healthcare in public schools."
And Taylor contends that Reeves' victory ought to be an example for other Republican candidates.
"I think Mississippi's [gubernatorial] race shows that Republican candidates need to stick to their values. Tate Reeves ran as a very pro-life candidate; he also ran as someone opposing the transgender agenda [and] he ran on cutting taxes. These are core conservative values," Taylor states. "Tate Reeves didn't walk away from that.
"I think that when Republicans are authentic and they stand up for their values, they're more likely to get elected."
Columnist Suzanne Bowdey agrees, urging Christians and pro-lifers to stick to their beliefs regarding the unborn – and not shy away from the debate. "… If we're going to turn the tide, it'll take time," she writes. "And while we don't need to rethink our principles, we do need to rethink how we talk about them – if, in some cases, we even are."
Editor's Note: AFA Action is an affiliate of the American Family Association, the parent organization of the American Family News Network, which operates AFN.net.
