Anti-Abortion Group Invests $80 Million in Midterm Elections Amid Nationwide Reproductive Rights Battles

Anti-abortion group Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America and its partner political action committee, Women Speak Out PAC, announced on Wednesday an $80 million investment into the midterm election cycle to maintain Republican majorities in the U.S. House and Senate.

That funding will go to voter outreach in battleground states, including Michigan, Iowa, North Carolina and Georgia, according to a press release from the organization. All four states are Senate battlegrounds and contain key House battleground districts. Further, the effort includes deploying student teams into a dozen of the most competitive House battleground districts across the country, although what specific districts would be targeted was not indicated.

Strategic Outreach and Electoral Objectives

The money from the two organizations will be spent to contact 10.5 million voters through “canvassing, digital advertising, voter contact mail and a robust early vote campaign,” which will include home visits to 4.5 million voters. Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, stated: “Republicans simply cannot win without their pro-life base, especially in midterm elections when overall turnout drops.”

“Our mission is to fire up pro-life Americans who do not consistently vote in midterms and convince persuadable voters to reject the Democrats’ extreme all-trimester abortion agenda,” Dannenfelser continued. “We must retain our pro-life majorities in both houses to stop this extremism and prevent the abortion lobby from clawing back $500 million in taxpayer funding for their own political machine.”

Focus on the Michigan Senate Race

The race for Michigan’s U.S. Senate seat that will open up with the planned retirement of Sen. Gary Peters (D-Bloomfield Township) features a three-way race for the Democratic nomination between U.S. Rep. Haley Stevens of Birmingham, state Sen. Mallory McMorrow of Royal Oak and former Wayne County Health Director Abdul El-Sayed of Detroit. All three are strong abortion rights supporters.

On the GOP side, former U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers of White Lake Township has said he would not support a national abortion ban that would override Proposal 3, which enshrined abortion rights into the Michigan Constitution in 2022. However, Democrats have consistently noted that stance is a shift from his previous positions, including sponsorship of four bills that would have provided legal personhood from the moment of conception, a key anti-abortion concept. Furthermore, former Michigan GOP co-chair Bernadette Smith filed paperwork to form a committee to also run for the Republican nomination. Smith is staunchly anti-abortion.

Comparison of Election Cycle Spending

The group’s funding promised for this election cycle reflects a significant financial commitment compared to previous years:

State-Level Advocacy for Abortion Access

In contrast to national political spending, Texans of different races, ages, and genders are coming together through the Texas Abortion Advocacy Network (TAAN) to restore and expand abortion access. TAAN members are actively organizing against local abortion travel bans, mobilizing their communities in support of abortion access, and volunteering with abortion funds across Texas. Through these efforts, TAAN fosters collaboration and empowers advocates to make a tangible impact.

The Texas Abortion Advocacy Network includes the following organizations:

• ACLU of Texas
• AFIYA Center
• Planned Parenthood Texas Votes
• Jane’s Due Process
• National Latina Institute for Reproductive Justice
• Texas Freedom Network
• Young Invincibles

Members of TAAN also distribute reproductive health kits to those in need and start conversations with city and county governments about alleviating the current health care crisis caused by Texas’ total abortion ban.