Democrats hope to win over moderates using conservative values

Limited government. Protecting your personal freedoms.

Congressional candidate Monica Tranel says these themes are winning her favor with voters in the eastern Republican-leaning district of cherry red libertarian Montana.

Except, Tranel, a 58-year-old lawyer, is a Democrat. And she’s talking to conservative voters about abortion .

Since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade two years ago, the landmark case guaranteeing a constitutional right to abortion, Democrats have been on an electoral win streak. Candidates on the left saw a boost attributed to reproductive rights rhetoric in the 2022 midterm elections, and voters have recently sided with measures favoring abortion access in a handful of state ballot referendums.

As Democrats continue to campaign on the charged issue, many are emphasizing liberty and limited government − values historically touted by more conservative politicians.

Vice President Kamala Harris , who last month took over the top of the ticket for Democrats following President Joe Biden's decision to exit the race, called her presidential campaign "a fight for freedom." And her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz , has doubled down on this message.

"In Minnesota, we respect our neighbors and the personal choices they make," Walz told the Chicago crowd at the Democratic national convention.

"And even if we wouldn't make those same choices for ourselves," he continued, "we've got a golden rule: Mind your own damn business."

Since his debut with the Harris campaign, Walz has sought to differentiate Democrats' ideas of "freedom."

"Some of us are old enough to remember when it was Republicans who were talking about freedom," Walz said at a rally in Philadelphia earlier this month. "It turns out now what they meant was the government should be free to invade your doctor's office."

Republicans meanwhile have grappled with their response, with intraparty disagreement over federal versus state-level bans and where to set the limit.

Still, abortion is animating both parties, and is expected to weigh heavily in the outcome of 2024 and the first post-Roe presidential election.

And with that in mind, congressional candidates like Tranel are fine-tuning their reach to moderate and undecided voters, whose decision may hinge on this hot button issue.

Democrats take conservative talking points to abortion

Michelle Vallejo, a Democrat running to represent Texas' 15th Congressional District, recalls that while campaigning at a county fair earlier this year, she met a voter there who was quick to bring up her position supporting abortion access − and his disagreement.

“I told him, ‘You know, actually, we have much more in common than you know,’” Vallejo, 33, told USA TODAY. “First of all, we are both proud Texans, and we love our freedom. And when it comes to defending women's reproductive freedom and choice, that's what it's all about.

Like Tranel, who has a similar story from being out on the campaign trail, Vallejo is attempting to curry favor – and votes – from moderate and even conservative voters by talking the right’s bread and butter, limited government.

“And he said, you know, I kind of like the sound of that,” Vallejo said.

A recent poll by KFF , a nonprofit health policy organization, found 50% of Republican women voters believe abortion should be legal in all or most cases. And specifically younger GOP women – 18 to 49 years old – said they would consider themselves “pro-choice.”

And while 55% of Republican women said they prefer their party on women's issues, 11% think Democrats would do a better job and 34% trust neither side.

“Voters don't vote for policy," said Peter Loge, a professor and director of George Washington University's School of Media and Public Affairs.

"We all think we're smart and detail-oriented and rational," he said. But, "we vote for feelings. We vote for ideas. We vote for visions that get translated into policy.”

Republicans talk "commonsense solutions" on abortion

If red-state Democrats seem to be borrowing from the conservative playbook, emphasizing shrinking government and highlighting personal freedom when talking abortion, their hope would be to peel away voters from the traditional GOP base.

"The other thing that it does then is set up a contrast," Loge said. "Because if Democrats believe in freedom, Republicans, by definition, don't ... Obviously, Republicans believe in freedom, but the implication of the framing is, We're the party of freedom, therefore Republicans must not be.”

Republicans say it’s a “ridiculous claim.”

“The sensitive and personal topic of abortion is already being used by Democrats as a wedge issue to divide New Mexicans,” Yvette Herrell, a former congresswoman and now Republican candidate for a district in southwest New Mexico, said in a statement to USA TODAY.

“I believe we can disagree civilly on difficult issues like abortion,” Herrell added, “while also working together to bring down the cost of living, secure our border, and get crime under control, all of which our current congressman has not done.”

Herrell’s campaign website emphasizes “commonsense solutions” and “shared values.” On that values page, Herrell mentions specifically that she would “stop government overreach into our lives and protect the hardworking families of New Mexico.”

Below that, Herrell's campaign site includes an opinion piece written by Herrell in May explaining her position on abortion.

“First, and this is no secret, I am pro-life,” Herrell wrote. “As a Christian, I believe every human life is a sacred gift from God.”

Herrell continued to say, though, she supports exceptions in the case of rape, incest or life of the mother.

While the left has found their foothold on reproductive rights, candidates and lawmakers on the right are often just as animated by the issue – even if they are often more hesitant to put abortion in the foreground.

New York Republican and congressional candidate Alison Esposito lists abortion as the second of nine “real key issues” on her campaign website.

“Like most Americans, Alison believes in reasonable exceptions and has NEVER advocated for a federal abortion ban,” Esposito’s website reads. “She believes that abortion should be safe, rare and not used as a form of birth control.”

Rep. Jen Kiggans, R-Va., uses similar language on her reelection campaign site: “Jen believes we should approach this issue with compassion, common sense, and consensus,” her issues page reads.

Kiggans and Esposito did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

One way or the other, voters expected to respond

Abortion isn’t usually the first issue voters bring up when Tranel goes door-knocking across the western region of Montana. More often, she said they will start by telling her about their strained wallets or housing headaches.

“But then if you ask them, well, what would you actually crossover and vote on, this is the crossover issue,” Tranel said.

The sentiment spans political parties in states like Arizona, where congressional candidate Kirsten Engel said she hears from independents – an influential voting bloc in the Grand Canyon State – that they want decisions related to reproductive care to be theirs.

“It's one of the most universal things that I hear, is that these should not be political decisions,” Engel said. “These are personal decisions. They're complicated. They impact healthcare, and they are healthcare. And they're just not a decision that you can come up with some kind of rule about.”

Still, Loge said Republicans hold their own advantage in this discussion of rights and freedom.

"It's not a question of who wants to restrict freedom," he added. "It's a question of which freedom in which context, and then who gets to sort of own that framing.”

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Democrats hope to win over moderates using conservative values