Image
June 2, 2023

Students for Life Action’s Informal Polling of Students & Supporters Nationwide Finds Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis Still in the Lead with the Pro-Life Gen/SFLAction Supporters

May 2023 Pro-Life GenPolitical Pulse Poll

“As his official campaign gears up, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis leads among the Students for Life Action audience, with former President Trump not far behind,” said SFLAction’s Kristan Hawkins. “Not all candidates are yet in the field, but those who will be voting pro-life first are paying attention. This is the first of the pulse polls planned for the Presidential primary season. SFLAction challenges all candidates to talk about the human rights issue of our day – abortion – to win the vote of the first Post-Roe Generation.” 

“Also of note, in question two of a two-part inquiry, almost 92% of the Pro-Life Gen said they wholeheartedly supported endorsing a GOP candidate, during the hotly contested primary.”

WASHINGTON, D.C. (06-02-2023) – Students for Life Action President Kristan Hawkins said that in the first of SFLAction’s Pulse Polls looking at GOP candidates for the Presidential nomination in the 2024 race for the GOP conducted through digital outreach, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis received almost 42% of the support followed by former President Donald Trump at almost 35% of the informal vote.

Other candidates, some undeclared, who got support include: Former Vice President Mike Pence at almost 4%; Sen. Tim Scott at almost 4%; former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley at almost 3%; entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy at almost 2%; with former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, Asa Hutchinson, New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, Virginia Gov. Glen Youngkin, and a few others all getting less than 1%. Almost 10% of the vote went to undecided or other.

“Like all voters, those who will prioritize the human rights issue of our day – abortion – want to hear how those seeking federal office will act if elected. If we’ve learned anything from President Joe Biden, it’s that federal options to advance or discourage abortion exists in practically every part of government – from the Veterans Administration to the Postal Service. GOP candidates will need answers for how to restore a culture of life,” said Hawkins. “Students for Life Action will release our candidate survey in the near feature to help those running for office identify where we can get to work, and the pulse poll will be an ongoing feature to track the Pro-Life Gen’s views on this race.”

In January, DeSantis also won the straw poll at the Students for Life hosted National Pro-Life Summit with Protection at Conception as the leading policy goal. Read more here.

Students for Life Action has been calling on all candidates for office to articulate their vision for protecting life in law and in service, with an emphasis on protecting life earlier in pregnancy as more than 9 in 10 abortions take place by 12 weeks – 3 months of pregnancy, according to the CDC.

In Students for Life of America’s YouGov poll earlier this year, such limits were well received. Consider this form the report: THE LEGISLATION DEEMED CONTROVERSIAL BY THE MEDIA IN RECENT HEADLINES IS OF INTEREST TO ABOUT ONE-THIRD OF THE YOUTH VOTE:  

Looking at legislation that would limit abortion after a baby’s heartbeat has been confirmed, 38% said they could support a candidate who held that position, and 39% said they could support a candidate backing a bill to limit abortion at 15 weeks (almost 4 months of pregnancy). And more than 4 in 10 would consider supporting a candidate limiting abortion when a baby can live outside the womb.

In fact, a 2022 OnMessage poll found that 49% GOP and 31% DEM supported limits a heartbeat detection (often 6 weeks) vs. unlimited abortion until birth.

To learn more about SFLAction’s Pro-Roe Blueprint, click here.

For interviews email [email protected] 

CLICK HERE to read Kristan Hawkins’ op-ed at The American Mind entitled ‘Advice for the GOP on Abortion Policy’

–30–

Students for Life Action (SFLAction), a 501c4, along with its 501c3 sister organization, Students for Life of America (SFLA), make up the nation’s largest pro-life youth organization and a political and policy operation engaging people of all ages. Together they work to end abortion — the human rights issue of our day — and provide political, legal, and community support for women and their children, born and preborn. Headquartered in Fredericksburg, VA, SFLA has more than 1,30groups on middlehigh school, college, university, medical, and law school campuses in all 50 states. SFLA creates strategy, policy, and programming to connect those most targeted for abortion with people ready to help and builds a framework for political engagement on their behalf. SFLA and SFLAction have more conversations with those most targeted by the abortion industry than any other pro-life outreach in the world, reaching more than 2 million people across social media platforms each week and engaging in approximately 100,000 digital conversations per month. Over more than 16 years, President Kristan Hawkins has grown SFLAction/SFLA into an $18 million organization preparing for a Post-Roe America.