If you read one thing: As election season heats up, GOP candidates and leaders have become all but silent on the abortion laws they once openly touted, while some have even expressed support for revising the state's ban to include exemptions in cases of rape and incest.
Will Texas politicians actually reconsider the state's abortion laws? A Republican consultant and three political scientists say the support for broader exemptions is a product of campaign season, and there's little inclination that Republicans will actually change the law when they return to Austin in January.
Brendan Steinhauser, a GOP strategist based in Austin: "This is mostly election rhetoric delivered in the final 30 days of the election, and I think that most people probably are aware of that."
Why would they say they support broader exemptions? Nearly 80 percent of Texans support abortion access in cases of rape or incest, according to an August poll by the Texas Politics Project.
The GOP lawmakers who have spoken about abortion recently have likely seen the polling and want to ensure they don't alienate independent and undecided voters, Steinhauser said.
Steinhauser: "It's a battle for the heart and soul of the swing voter."
Will the Legislature actually change anything next year? House Speaker Dade Phelan and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who head the two chambers of the Legislature, have both said they personally oppose the exceptions, but acknowledged there would be further discussion on the subject next year.
However, near-total abortion bans were widely unpopular for years before the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, and Republicans still opted to enact some of the strictest laws in the nation, said Joshua Blank, research director at the Texas Politics Project.
Blank: "The people that put them in power are these staunchly pro-life, no exceptions organizations and volunteers and donors and activists."
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