Abortion No Longer A 'Wedge Issue' In Western States, Opinion Piece Says

Main Category: Abortion
Article Date: 20 Nov 2008 - 7:00 PDT

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The defeat of abortion-related ballot initiatives in California, Colorado and South Dakota "leads to the inexorable conclusion: Abortion is finished as a wedge issue, at least in the suddenly swing-state West," Laura Chapin -- a Democratic strategist and consultant for the No on 48 Campaign, which led opposition to the Colorado measure -- writes in a U.S. News and World Report opinion piece. "Ballot initiatives are tempting for abortion opponents because they at least partially sidestep the complications of the legislative process," Chapin writes. She adds that this is "especially true in states like California and Colorado that have very low thresholds for getting something on the ballot."

Chapin writes that Colorado's Amendment 48 -- which would have changed the state constitution to define a fertilized egg as a "person" -- "backfired" because the "extreme nature" of the bill "strengthened the pro-choice community in Colorado by reminding people that we're the moderates and by attracting support from a broad coalition that otherwise wouldn't have been involved." A "couple of major reasons" prevented abortion from being a "wedge issue in a formerly red state like Colorado," including the fact that "libertarian-minded Colorado voters draw a bright line between something they disapprove of and something they think the government should ban," she says. Chapin adds that "westerners are inherently allergic to being told what to do, especially by deceptive means. The word 'sneaky' came up most often among low-information voters in 'No on 48'-sponsored focus groups because the amendment intentionally didn't mention abortion at all."

Chapin concludes, "Social issues are like rocking in a rocking chair -- they give you something to do, but they really don't take you anywhere. ... Abortion has lost its potency as a wedge issue in western states and may be on the same downward spiral nationally" (Chapin, U.S. News and World Report, 11/14).

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