Republican Senate candidates start to shift on key plank that has haunted last two cycles

Republican candidates running in competitive Senate races next year are shifting their stances on abortion by softening their tone on a key issue that has been historically dominated by Democrats as a winning issue in key elections.

GOP candidates in key swing states are attempting to solidify their stances on abortion by articulating clear guidelines for situations in which the procedure should be legal or illegal, with others even going so far as to oppose a federal abortion ban outright. The shift comes after Democrats seized messaging on the issue during the 2022 midterm elections, allowing the party to perform better than expected in both the House and Senate.

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Now, Republican leaders are pressing their candidates to take a unified stance on the issue and address it head-on ahead of expected attacks from Democrats ahead of the 2024 elections.

Here are some of the top states where GOP Senate candidates are shaking up their talking points on the key issue:

Ohio

The Ohio Senate race is expected to be one of the most competitive races in the 2024 cycle, with the seat being deemed a tossup by the nonpartisan Cook Political Report. The seat is currently held by Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), with Republicans eyeing the seat as a chance to flip control of the upper chamber.

The GOP primary has attracted a crowded field of candidates to challenge Brown, including businessman Bernie Moreno, Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose, and state Sen. Matt Dolan. Each of the three has made their opposition to abortion clear while on the campaign trail, but the candidates have differed in how they would approach the issue in different situations.

Moreno has positioned himself as being anti-abortion, telling voters earlier this year that “Republicans should never back down from their belief that life begins at conception and that abortion is the murder of an innocent baby.” The candidate also came out in staunch opposition to a ballot measure that passed last month to enshrine abortion rights in the state constitution, claiming the measure would pave the way for rapists to “force” women to get abortions.

Since then, Moreno has attempted to clear up his stance on the issue, signaling support for a federal 15-week abortion ban with the caveat that states should be allowed to enforce stricter restrictions if they so choose.

Meanwhile, LaRose has cemented himself as a staunch anti-abortion candidate, vowing in August that “if a pro-life measure comes before the Senate, then I would vote as a pro-life American.”

Dolan has painted himself in a similar light but made clear that he believes decisions on abortion restrictions should be left to the individual states. He’s also vowed not to support any anti-abortion legislation unless it contains exceptions for rape and incest.

Arizona

Arizona is also expected to be one of the most competitive Senate races next year, especially as it may feature a high-profile three-way race between Democratic Rep. Ruben Gallego, Republican candidate Kari Lake, and independent incumbent Sen. Kyrsten Sinema.

Lake, a firebrand conservative who has national name recognition after running for Arizona governor last year, was among the first GOP candidates to shift her stance on abortion — softening her tone on the issue compared to her gubernatorial platform. During her 2022 run, Lake offered her support of an 1864 state law that would ban abortion in almost all cases, which briefly came back into effect after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade last summer.

Now, however, Lake has offered a more nuanced position. On her campaign website, Lake acknowledges that “a majority of people in this country and in the State of Arizona hold the view that abortion should be legal with restrictions.” As a result, Lake clarified her position to oppose a federal abortion ban but did not make clear at what point in a pregnancy she would draw her own line to ban the procedure.

Michigan

The race for Michigan’s Senate seat is one Republicans see as one of the most important as they try to regain control of the Rust Belt, especially after the retirement announcement from incumbent Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI). Her retirement opens a key opportunity for Republicans to flip a seat as part of their efforts to win control of the upper chamber.

Former Rep. Mike Rogers, who is running for the seat, has established himself as being against federal abortion restrictions, arguing the issue should be left up to the states. That comes in contrast with his previous voting record in the House, during which he voted at least twice — once in 2012 and another time in 2013 — to implement some form of federal abortion restrictions.

Former Rep. Peter Meijer, also running for the seat, has a similar voting background. During his time in Congress, Meijer repeatedly voted against expanding abortion access — a position he says has now shifted due to “a different world” the United States is currently in after the overturning of Roe v. Wade.

“I do not support federal bans on abortion, period, full stop,” Meijer told the Detroit Free Press last week, adding abortion restrictions should be decided by the individual states.

James Craig, former Detroit Police chief, and Senate candidate, has also come out against a federal abortion ban despite his past support for a 1931 state law that banned the procedure in the state. Since then, Craig has said it should remain a state issue.

“I think a heartbeat of a child matters. But I’m also sensitive to it being realistic and something that should stay with the states,” he told the Detroit News.

Pennsylvania

Republican candidate Dave McCormick spent much of his first few weeks on the campaign trail clarifying his stance on abortion, especially after Democrats sought to weaponize his own comments against him in the high-profile race.

McCormick ran for Senate last year and made comments during a Republican primary debate that he believes life begins at conception and that exceptions for abortion should be made only in “very rare instances.” Weeks before McCormick announced his second run for Senate, Democrats blasted those comments in a series of attack ads, prompting the Republican candidate to clarify his statements after announcing his 2024 bid.

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In those clarifications, McCormick’s campaign argued the Republican candidate would accept exceptions for the procedure in a number of cases, including instances of rape, incest, or saving the life of the mother.

“As Dave has said numerous times last cycle and more recently, he is pro-life and supports exceptions in the cases of rape, incest, and saving the life of the mother,” McCormick campaign spokeswoman Elizabeth Gregory told NBC News.