The Lessons of Kansas

On Tuesday, an overwhelming majority of Kansas voters defeated a referendum that would have added language to the state constitution declaring that the state’s basic law “does not create or secure a right to abortion.”

The ballot initiative was a response to the 2019 Kansas supreme-court ruling that held the state constitution contained a “fundamental” right to abortion since 1859. That judicial usurpation, plus the post-Dobbs, pro-abortion media monsoon, made the task of the pro-life movement very difficult in Kansas. But Tuesday’s defeat in a high-turnout election was so lopsided — 58.8 percent “No” to 41.2 percent “Yes” — that pro-lifers should realize that merely finessing their messaging or raising more campaign funds wouldn’t have changed the outcome.