Both Florida Democratic Gubernatorial Candidates Neglect to Say if They Support Limits on Abortion

In last night’s Democratic primary debate for the upcoming Florida gubernatorial election, Nikki Fried and Charlie Crist — the two contenders for the Democratic nomination to face Governor Ron DeSantis in the general — were asked “what limits to abortion access, if any,” they supported. Both declined to provide any. Fried thanked the moderator for “this very important question” before pivoting to attacking Crist. (“This question is the greatest difference between myself, Charlie, and Ron. I have been pro-choice my entire life”). And Crist, when prompted explicitly in a follow-up question about what limits he would support, answered: “You know, the question really isn’t ‘what limits?’, the question is why do Republicans like Ron Desantis not honor and respect a woman’s right to choose? That’s the issue we’re dealing with.” 

Polls show that Floridians, like most Americans, are somewhere between the two parties on the issue of abortion. But — again, like most Americans — the plurality, if not the majority, favors some restrictions, in contrast to the abortion-rights maximalism reflected by Fried, Crist, and most of their peers in the contemporary Democratic Party. A University of South Florida poll published earlier this month found:

Roughly a third (33%) say that the state should pass a law protecting abortion access.

In contrast, 44% favor some state-level restrictions, including:

• A “no exceptions” ban on abortion (9%).
• A statewide abortion ban, with exceptions for rape, incest and mother’s health (21%).
• Restrictions on abortion access after 15 weeks of pregnancy (15%).

Another 13% said that the state should do nothing and leave abortion laws as they are, while 8% were “unsure”.

Notably, the abortion ban that DeSantis signed into law in Florida — which both Fried and Crist repeatedly attacked during last night’s debate — is relatively moderate, opting for a cutoff at 15 weeks rather than the six-week or outright bans favored by most other red states. (Some 92.7 percent of abortions occur within the first 13 weeks of pregnancy, according to the CDC.) It’s not unreasonable to suspect, then, that the current occupant of the Florida governor’s mansion is more in touch with Florida voters on this issue than his two would-be opponents.