2023 Election Day: Key States to Monitor – Ohio, Virginia, Kentucky

• Off-year elections are taking place in Ohio, Kentucky, Virginia, Mississippi and other states, and the results will give insight into the ongoing relevance of abortion rights and President Biden’s approval ratings ahead of the upcoming presidential election year. Democrats are looking for reassurance in their stance on key issues like abortion, a major positive point for the party according to a recent New York Times/Siena poll.

• Besides the gubernatorial races, voters will also be making direct decisions on various issues. In Ohio, voters will decide on a referendum to establish a right to abortion under the state constitution. If passed, Ohio would be the 24th state to legalize marijuana, putting pressure on Congress to ease restrictions on interstate banking for legal cannabis businesses. In Texas, voters will decide on 14 constitutional amendments, including one that would prevent the state from imposing a “wealth” tax and another that would raise the mandatory retirement age of state judges to 79 from 75.

Off-Year Elections: The Battle Over Abortion and the Impact of Biden’s Low Approval Ratings

Off-year elections in Ohio, Kentucky, Virginia, Mississippi, and elsewhere on Tuesday may shed light on the political potency of abortion and the impact of President Biden’s low approval ratings. These results could indicate whether Democrats’ stance on abortion, a key issue highlighted by the most recent New York Times/Siena poll, is resonating with voters amid the upcoming presidential election.

Abortion access vs. Biden’s unpopularity in Virginia and Kentucky

Virginia’s General Assembly is up for election, with the state’s popular Republican governor, Glenn Youngkin, aiming to gain control of the State Senate. He hopes this move will solidify total Republican command in Richmond and bolster his national ambitions. Democrats, meanwhile, are running on an abortion rights platform, contending that GOP control could terminate abortion access in the Southeast’s last bastion.

Under Youngkin’s leadership, Republicans are trying a new strategy that restricts abortion access after 15 weeks of pregnancy, with certain exemptions. This approach, however, must prevail over the burden of Biden’s unpopularity. A parallel contention is playing out in Kentucky, where Democrats are leaning heavily on the abortion issue to challenge Republican gubernatorial candidate Daniel Cameron.

Will voters in Ohio back abortion rights?

Ohio, a reliably Republican state, is about to conduct a referendum to establish a right to abortion. With the Supreme Court’s recent overturn of Roe v. Wade, the referendum could be an unambiguous test of Republican voters’ stance on abortion.

In Mississippi, a test of expanding Medicaid — and scandal

Mississippi‘s abortion ban led to the Supreme Court’s overturn of Roe v. Wade in Dobbs v. Jackson. Now, the state is in the midst of a heated gubernatorial race. However, the key issue is not abortion—since both candidates oppose it—but a proposal to expand Medicaid and the fallout from a public corruption scandal involving the misuse of federal funds intended for the poor.

Ballot initiatives, from wealth to weed

Voters are directly deciding numerous issues on Tuesday. In Ohio, they will vote on whether to legalize recreational cannabis use. If approved, Ohio would become the 24th state to do so, potentially putting pressure on Congress to ease restrictions for legal cannabis businesses.

Texans are voting on 14 constitutional amendments, including one that would prohibit the state from imposing a wealth tax. They will also decide on a measure to raise the mandatory retirement age of state judges from 75 to 79.

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