MILWAUKEE — After Republicans adopted a watered-down anti-abortion platform this week, leaders in the movement are setting their sights on what’s next: Finding the politician who will lead the party back to full-throated support for a federal abortion ban.
Defeating Democrats in November remains a priority for the anti-abortion movement, but activists are already beginning to discuss future election cycles.
Several names are being discussed for 2028, including Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, Sen. Tim Scott, Sen. Marco Rubio and Donald Trump’s newly selected running mate, Sen. JD Vance, all of whom have indicated support for federal restrictions, according to a source familiar with the behind-the-scenes dynamics of the movement.
Some anti-abortion leaders have met with those politicians as looking beyond 2024 remains a “top priority” for the movement, the source said.
“We’re doing everything that we can do to raise the money that we need to raise and do all the work, the door-to-door, all the stuff to win in battlegrounds, to win this election,” the source said. “But we can walk and chew gum at the same time, and so that work is important.”
The anti-abortion movement has a long history of looking ahead to achieve its goals; just look at the nearly 50 years that it took to overturn Roe v. Wade. Even if a federal ban is on ice under Trump, abortion opponents believe they can prevail eventually. They’re also not giving up on the next four years: Activists told NOTUS they plan to reengage with Trump and Vance on abortion in January if they win the White House.
“I have no concern about how Trump’s gonna govern on the life issue,” said Arizona state Rep. Alex Kolodin, an RNC delegate who signed onto a push to bring back federal abortion ban language in the platform. “We already know how Trump’s going to govern. So we don’t have to go by his messaging in this platform, right? We know that he governs as a pro-life president.”
Some anti-abortion advocates remain angry and disappointed over the party weakening its position. Students for Life of America President Kristan Hawkins expressed disappointment not only on the platform but also on how little focus abortion has received during the convention: “[T]he party that has been our voting home for decades has been silent about whether we are welcome,” she said in a statement.
Still, most anti-abortion activists at the convention were ready to move forward. Family Research Council President Tony Perkins, who led a group of 19 RNC delegates in releasing the so-called “minority report” to reinstate federal abortion ban language, indicated that there would be “further conversations” over the platform and where the movement goes next. He put his platform change effort on pause after the assassination attempt on Trump.
After the platform was adopted without language in support of a federal abortion ban, Perkins directed conservatives not to “give our time as volunteers or our money as supporters to those who are moving in the wrong direction,” including, he seemed to imply, Trump.
“If President Trump says the life issue is a state issue, which I disagree with that, but then maybe we should give our time and money to those state candidates who will support life,” Perkins said on his online show. “We need to be very involved at the local and state level and we need to give our time and our money to those candidates who are embracing the truth that every human life is worthy to be protected and welcomed into our world.”
(The source told NOTUS that Perkins likely was referring to the next election, not suggesting people stop donating to Trump. The Family Research Council did not immediately respond to several requests for interviews and clarification.)
One priority will be to get involved in smaller races to identify candidates who can champion the cause of ending abortion in the U.S., said Kristi Hamrick, vice president of media and policy of Students for Life of America.
“It’s the nature of politics,” Hamrick said, adding that when groups start at the state level with someone, they can see them “grow in their skills” and potentially move up in office.
The Utah chapter of Eagle Forum, a national conservative association, asks state-level candidates about their stances on abortion for its survey, said its president, Gayle Ruzicka, also an RNC delegate. (Eagle Forum is helmed by Ed Martin, the deputy director of the RNC’s Platform Committee.)
“It’s unusual for the Republican candidates not to be pro-life,” Ruzicka said. “And it’s really unusual for them to win if they are not pro-life.”
Georgia delegate Suzi Voyles, who signed onto the minority report and serves as president of Eagle Forum’s Georgia chapter, said that state-level activists are constantly on the lookout for potential state candidates. “It’s more of a grassroots effort,” she told NOTUS.
Some abortion opponents have argued that the platform is stronger on the matter than its critics suggest.
Voyles said that Martin assured her before the platform went through the committee that she would approve of its abortion position. “He was animated,” she said of the platform committee leader. “‘You’re going to be so pleased; you’re going to be so happy!’”
Martin didn’t respond to a request for comment on the exchange.
He argued on a recent episode of his podcast that any frustration with the platform from anti-abortion activists was rooted in misunderstanding. He said that while there is an emphasis on state-level action, the federal role of the government is still there, just not obviously stated.
He suggested that between the support for the 14th Amendment of the Constitution and opposition for so-called “late-term abortion” was a clear indication that the platform did support federal abortion restrictions.
“It’s got protections for pro-life; don’t let anybody tell you there’s not protections for pro-life. There’s not as many words describing it,” Martin said earlier this month.
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Oriana González is a reporter at NOTUS. Ben T.N. Mause is a NOTUS reporter and an Allbritton Journalism Institute fellow.