They don’t like abortion, but Kaine’s GOP challengers say they won’t seek a federal ban

U.S. Sen Tim Kaine, D-Va., kicked off his 2024 reelection bid this week with a campaign stop in Richmond. (Graham Moomaw/Virginia Mercury)

It’s obvious where Democratic U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine stands on abortion access. And that’s not just for the fact that his party has been outspoken in support of access and other reproductive rights. Kaine has also co-sponsored the bipartisan Reproductive Freedom For All Act — an attempt to codify abortion protections into federal law.

What has been less obvious is whether his Republican challengers would support federal abortion bans or restrictions. Many on their campaign websites refer to themselves as “pro-life” but don’t specify where they fall on the spectrum of restrictions that Virginia Republicans have presented in recent years. 

However, four of the five candidates have told the Mercury that they believe abortion regulation should be handled state-by-state. 

Candidates who hold that view include former 10th Congressional District GOP nominee Hung Cao, lawyer Jonathan Emord, former Gov. Ron DeSantis staffer Scott Parkinson and Army veteran Eddie Garcia. The fifth candidate, Navy veteran Chuck Smith, could not be reached for an interview by the time of this publication. 

At campaign events, social media, or on their websites, they’ve each expressed support for abortion restrictions or celebrated the reversal of federal abortion protections. Cao, a military veteran, likened abortion advocates to the “evil” he described seeing during his time in the service interrogating a suspected bombmaker in Iraq. 

But each man has noted how they don’t see their potential role in Congress as having much impact on abortion law. 

“I understand why Democrats continue to try to stoke fear and make the 2024 election about abortion, but it is not about abortion because abortion is a state issue,” Parkinson said in an email.

But abortion has remained a salient national issue in elections since the United States Supreme Court overturned federal protections in the summer of 2022. 

While state legislatures around the country have imposed restrictions or near-total bans, others have enshrined protections into their state constitutions. Next year, Democrats in Virginia’s legislature hope to do the same, as it remains the least restrictive southern state.

Meanwhile, some members of Congress have sought measures to implement federal controls.

Kaine has spearheaded an effort to codify Roe into federal law while Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-SC, has introduced a federal 15-week limit.

During an October 2023 interview on the John Fredericks Show, Parkinson had been posed with a hypothetical situation of whether or not he would vote for Graham’s 15 week bill.

Parkinson said it would be unlikely to find success in the Senate. But when Fredericks pressed further, Parkinson said that he would vote for the bill because “it would ultimately protect life.”

Meanwhile, Parkinson said in a recent email to the Mercury that he expects to see continued differences in abortion regulation state-by-state. He noted how Virginia state law allows the procedure through the second trimester, with exceptions for later abortions. 

“If policymakers don’t like that position, I recommend they run for governor, state senator, or delegate to change the law in Virginia,” Parkinson said.

He asserted that he’s running for Congress for other issues, such as immigration and the economy.

Meanwhile, Garcia asserted that he does not plan to seek federal abortion law. 

“I’m not trying to institute any bans or caps or restrictions or anything at the federal level,” Garcia said in a phone call. “I think that [the overturn of Roe] was correctly decided, that it should be pushed down to the states.”

Cao, likewise, wrote in an email: “I will vote against any national abortion ban.”

Before the men could  face the option to vote for or against a national prohibition, they first have to undergo a primary and general election. Each of them will face off in a June Republican primary to determine who is challenging Kaine in November. 

Smith indicated support for states implementing abortion bans at an April candidate forum, but noted that it’s states’ purview to do so. He stressed that he and his fellow opponents have to be clear against Kaine going forward on the matter of abortion, especially since Democrats have made abortion a key pillar of their campaigns.

“What we say here today we should be prepared to say in the general election. We’re looking to beat Tim Kaine and this is what [Democrats are] gonna lead out with,” Smith said. “And my position is: Life begins at conception. There are no exceptions to that.”

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