Republicans are using anti-transgender messaging to trick voters into supporting abortion bans
Source: Mary Ziegler. "Republicans have a new plan to trick people into voting against abortion rights.." March 18, 2026. slate.com
The Gist
The author argues that Republicans found a sneaky way to ban abortion after losing many direct votes on the issue. They're now combining abortion bans with popular anti-transgender policies in confusing ballot measures, tricking voters into supporting abortion restrictions they might otherwise reject.
Conclusion
Republicans have discovered a successful strategy to ban abortion by packaging abortion restrictions with popular anti-transgender measures, thereby confusing and misleading voters about what they're actually voting for
Premises
- Anti-abortion ballot measures have consistently failed across states since Dobbs, even in conservative states like Missouri
- Missouri Republicans created a new ballot measure (Amendment 3) that combines abortion restrictions with transgender care bans, using the same name as the pro-choice amendment voters just passed
- Polling shows Missouri voters support banning gender-affirming care by overwhelming margins and support the new Amendment 3 by 47-40 percent
- The Trump administration is offering anti-transgender policies as substitutes for abortion restrictions to placate social conservatives
- The Missouri ballot measure emphasizes popular positions like rape/incest exceptions while downplaying that it would criminalize most other abortions
- This strategy of attaching abortion bans to anti-transgender measures appears to be working where direct abortion restrictions have failed
Assumptions
- Voters are not fully informed about what ballot measures actually contain
- Anti-transgender sentiment is more politically powerful than pro-choice sentiment in conservative states
- Republican strategists are deliberately designing confusing ballot language to mislead voters
- Voters will support measures they oppose if packaged with measures they support