Abortion ruling: What impact will it have in New York elections?
As statewide and congressional campaigns hit the homestretch, voters soon will signal how important they consider abortion rights in a Deep Blue state such as New York.
Though abortion has been a political issue for decades, the U.S. Supreme Court’s “Dobbs” decision this past summer, which overturned federal abortion rights, thrust the issue into campaigns like at no time in recent memory.
Gov. Kathy Hochul, U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer and many other Democrats have made abortion rights a keystone of their campaigns.
Republican gubernatorial candidate Lee Zeldin and other GOP candidates have sought to downplay it, saying rights won’t be impacted in New York, which has its own abortion law.
But a proposed federal bill by Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) to ban abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy in all states has helped keep the issue in the headlines.
Here’s what to know about the issue as Election Day, Nov. 8, nears:
New York was the first state to approve abortion rights, doing so in 1970 — three years before the landmark Roe v. Wade decision the high court overturned in June.
In 2019, then-Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo and a Democrat-led State Legislature updated and codified rights protected by Roe into state law.
Following the Dobbs decision, Hochul, who became governor when Cuomo resigned in 2021, and lawmakers enacted several other laws, including measures to protect abortion providers from legal actions from other states.
Zeldin has said he would not seek to change New York’s abortion law, but accused Democrats of overplaying the threat to rights.
In a debate with Hochul Tuesday, Zeldin said there was no chance a Democrat-led State Assembly would approve a bill to repeal the 2019 state law and, therefore, he couldn’t act if he were elected.
Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie (D-Bronx) countered that the issue went beyond repealing the law.
Heastie noted a governor could use his or her leverage in budget negotiations to try to “jam through” a policy agenda including, “severely limiting reproductive services or ending abortion rights altogether.”
New York governors going back to George Pataki, a Republican who served from 1995 to 2006, often have used the budget to varying degrees to get policy victories in exchange for things such as school aid increases.
Hochul has run multiple ads highlighting her efforts to defend abortion rights, and Zeldin’s opposition to them.
She’s criticized him for celebrating the Dobbs decision, supporting abortion bans after 20 weeks of pregnancy and telling an interest group he’d like to appoint an anti-abortion rights health commissioner.
When Zeldin vowed not to change the state’s abortion law, Hochul said at the candidates' debate: “People don’t trust that.”
Later, she said: “Women should know this is on the ballot.”
Zeldin calls abortion a nonissue in New York, and has cut a new ad to emphasize his stance.
“As governor, I would not change, and could not change, New York’s abortion law,” Zeldin says in the spot.
He said he’d focus on selecting the most qualified person as health commissioner.
The Albany Times Union asked Zeldin about an election questionnaire in which he said he’d vote to deny taxpayer funds for Planned Parenthood.
Zeldin replied he'd answered the query as a legislator, and that budgets he’d approve as governor likely would have funding because Democratic lawmakers would insist.
Separately, Zeldin has criticized Hochul for approving a state budget that earmarks money to assist out-of-state women coming to New York for abortion procedures, saying it wasn’t a good use of taxpayers’ money.
Democrats certainly have sought to make abortion rights an issue in the races in Long Island’s four congressional districts, which could affect control of the House of Representatives next year.
“There’s a choice between whether women and girls will retain autonomy over their health care decisions, or whether we decide to have a national abortion ban that would make abortion a federal crime in every state, including New York,” Laura Gillen, the Democratic candidate in Nassau's 4th Congressional District, said during a NewsdayTV debate.
“I would never support a nationwide abortion band,” Anthony D’Esposito, her GOP opponent, replied.
Later, D'Esposito said: “We know in New York nothing is changing.”
In August, the Dobbs decision was cited as the major factor in a Hudson Valley special congressional election that Democrat Pat Ryan won in an upset.
New York Democrats are hoping to repeat the outcome on Nov. 8, but Republicans say the issue has peaked.
It is correct that New Yorkers in recent polls have ranked the economy and crime as top election issues, with abortion trailing.
But abortion also ranks as a top “make or break” issue with many voters.
For instance, in a Siena College/Newsday survey of Long Island voters in early October, 42% of respondents said they would vote only for candidates who agreed with them on abortion rights — whether that was for or against.
As statewide and congressional campaigns hit the homestretch, voters soon will signal how important they consider abortion rights in a Deep Blue state such as New York.
Though abortion has been a political issue for decades, the U.S. Supreme Court’s “Dobbs” decision this past summer, which overturned federal abortion rights, thrust the issue into campaigns like at no time in recent memory.
Gov. Kathy Hochul, U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer and many other Democrats have made abortion rights a keystone of their campaigns.
Republican gubernatorial candidate Lee Zeldin and other GOP candidates have sought to downplay it, saying rights won’t be impacted in New York, which has its own abortion law.
But a proposed federal bill by Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) to ban abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy in all states has helped keep the issue in the headlines.
Here’s what to know about the issue as Election Day, Nov. 8, nears:
NY law and a governor’s powers
New York was the first state to approve abortion rights, doing so in 1970 — three years before the landmark Roe v. Wade decision the high court overturned in June.
In 2019, then-Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo and a Democrat-led State Legislature updated and codified rights protected by Roe into state law.
Following the Dobbs decision, Hochul, who became governor when Cuomo resigned in 2021, and lawmakers enacted several other laws, including measures to protect abortion providers from legal actions from other states.
Zeldin has said he would not seek to change New York’s abortion law, but accused Democrats of overplaying the threat to rights.
In a debate with Hochul Tuesday, Zeldin said there was no chance a Democrat-led State Assembly would approve a bill to repeal the 2019 state law and, therefore, he couldn’t act if he were elected.
Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie (D-Bronx) countered that the issue went beyond repealing the law.
Heastie noted a governor could use his or her leverage in budget negotiations to try to “jam through” a policy agenda including, “severely limiting reproductive services or ending abortion rights altogether.”
New York governors going back to George Pataki, a Republican who served from 1995 to 2006, often have used the budget to varying degrees to get policy victories in exchange for things such as school aid increases.
Pivoting to and away on the campaign trail
Hochul has run multiple ads highlighting her efforts to defend abortion rights, and Zeldin’s opposition to them.
She’s criticized him for celebrating the Dobbs decision, supporting abortion bans after 20 weeks of pregnancy and telling an interest group he’d like to appoint an anti-abortion rights health commissioner.
When Zeldin vowed not to change the state’s abortion law, Hochul said at the candidates' debate: “People don’t trust that.”
Later, she said: “Women should know this is on the ballot.”
Zeldin calls abortion a nonissue in New York, and has cut a new ad to emphasize his stance.
“As governor, I would not change, and could not change, New York’s abortion law,” Zeldin says in the spot.
He said he’d focus on selecting the most qualified person as health commissioner.
The Albany Times Union asked Zeldin about an election questionnaire in which he said he’d vote to deny taxpayer funds for Planned Parenthood.
Zeldin replied he'd answered the query as a legislator, and that budgets he’d approve as governor likely would have funding because Democratic lawmakers would insist.
Separately, Zeldin has criticized Hochul for approving a state budget that earmarks money to assist out-of-state women coming to New York for abortion procedures, saying it wasn’t a good use of taxpayers’ money.
It’s not just one contest
Democrats certainly have sought to make abortion rights an issue in the races in Long Island’s four congressional districts, which could affect control of the House of Representatives next year.
“There’s a choice between whether women and girls will retain autonomy over their health care decisions, or whether we decide to have a national abortion ban that would make abortion a federal crime in every state, including New York,” Laura Gillen, the Democratic candidate in Nassau's 4th Congressional District, said during a NewsdayTV debate.
“I would never support a nationwide abortion band,” Anthony D’Esposito, her GOP opponent, replied.
Later, D'Esposito said: “We know in New York nothing is changing.”
In August, the Dobbs decision was cited as the major factor in a Hudson Valley special congressional election that Democrat Pat Ryan won in an upset.
New York Democrats are hoping to repeat the outcome on Nov. 8, but Republicans say the issue has peaked.
'Make or break' issue
It is correct that New Yorkers in recent polls have ranked the economy and crime as top election issues, with abortion trailing.
But abortion also ranks as a top “make or break” issue with many voters.
For instance, in a Siena College/Newsday survey of Long Island voters in early October, 42% of respondents said they would vote only for candidates who agreed with them on abortion rights — whether that was for or against.
Bomb threat at Lee Zeldin's home ... Woman killed in Bohemia hit-and-run ... Holiday DWI patrols ... Black Friday deals
Bomb threat at Lee Zeldin's home ... Woman killed in Bohemia hit-and-run ... Holiday DWI patrols ... Black Friday deals
