From NBC News:
Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin and his political team are devoting significant resources to gaining Republican control of the General Assembly this fall, hoping to enact a conservative agenda that would include passing new abortion legislation, according to several sources familiar with the governor’s plans.
Virginia is the last state in the South without significant restrictions on abortion rights, and advocates see it as the next big battleground on the issue.
Passing a ban on abortion after 15 weeks, with exceptions for rape, incest and saving the life of the mother, would be a legislative priority for Youngkin if his party succeeds in the November legislative elections, the sources familiar with his plans said. The governor and his campaign team believe that 15 weeks is a “consensus” limit — one that many Virginians across political ideologies can agree upon. And they’re betting the measure is modest enough to avoid spikes in Democratic turnout more stringent bans have triggered in other states.
Their view is informed by the all-women focus groups they conducted on abortion throughout the summer as part of GOP efforts to hold the Virginia House and win the Senate, NBC News has learned. Zack Roday, the coordinated campaigns director, for Youngkin's state PAC Spirit of Virginia, said the women's views on abortion were "complicated" and "nuanced." But, he said, "15 weeks with exceptions, is a place where a lot of people start nodding their head."
Youngkin is eyeing new abortion limitations as elected Democrats in the Commonwealth sound the alarm that the national party isn't doing enough to prevent the Republican governor and his allies from winning the state Senate — or from keeping their hold on the House of Delegates.
“The Senate blue brick wall was the only thing that stopped us [in] the last two years from banning abortion in Virginia,” said Susan Swecker, the chair of the Virginia Democratic Party. “We cannot turn the whole state government over to the MAGA party.”
In the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade, Virginia remains the only state in the South that allows abortion procedures through the beginning of the third trimester. Republicans have largely shied away from the issue on the campaign trail, preferring to focus on issues such as education, the economy, and crime. Virginia has a large budget surplus, and Youngkin and GOP legislators have proposed dedicating that money to new tax cuts. Many Republican candidates do not even refer to abortion on their campaign websites.
“[Republicans] have a lot of political positives they can be playing, but they get off their strength if they talk about the hot-button social and cultural issues, where most Virginia voters are not in alignment with the Republican positions, especially abortion,” said Mark Rozell, the dean of the Schar School of Policy and Government at George Mason University.
Youngkin has indicated that he would support restricting access to abortion should Republicans gain control of the state legislature. Having frequently referred to himself as a “pro-life governor,” Youngkin supported the 15-week ban on the procedure that Republicans unsuccessfully attempted to pass this year.
Views on abortion among Virginians are somewhat muddled: An April Washington Post-Schar School poll found that the majority of Virginians oppose tightening abortion restrictions, but 49 percent said they would support a 15-week ban with exceptions for rape, incest, and the life of the mother. Even so, 45 percent of respondents disapproved of how Youngkin handled the issue.
But Youngkin has also publicly proclaimed that he would be willing to go much further than a 15-week ban. “Any bill that comes to my desk I will sign happily and gleefully in order to protect life,” Youngkin said last June. Meanwhile, state Democrats have kicked off a turnout operation “to warn voters of what’s at stake if MAGA extremists take full control of Richmond, including the very real threat of an abortion ban.”
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