Republicans finalized their platform for 2024 without two key planks. For decades, the GOP prioritized a federal abortion ban. They also praised traditional marriage between one man and one woman as a foundation of a flourishing society. This year, the party convention removed all references to federal action on abortion. The only reference to abortion says, “We will oppose Late Term Abortion, while supporting mothers and policies that advance Prenatal Care, access to Birth Control, and IVF (fertility treatments).” The only reference to marriage nixes endorsement of traditional man/woman marriage.
This realigned platform represents a realigned party: Republican priorities include border security and domestic manufacturing. It also opposes racial and gender ideologies in public schools and unfair foreign trade deals. These are widely popular policies on which many voters can agree. But what’s also notable is that socially conservative priorities have been left by the wayside for the first time in decades.
Regarding pro-life policies in the platform, Eric Trump dismissively said, “At the end of the day, this country has holes in the roof, and you’ve got to fix those holes and stop worrying about the spot on the wall in the basement.” Even some pro-life Republicans have begun to soften their stance: Vice Presidential candidate J.D. Vance recently said that he—like President Trump—now supports access to the (underregulated) abortion pill Mifepristone.
There are strategic reasons for this shift in the GOP platform. The fact is that social conservatism does not translate into broader appeal outside the GOP. Admittedly, there’s evidence for this: pro-life ballot measures have failed in numerous states, including Kentucky. As to marriage, recent polls indicate 69% of Americans support same-sex marriage.
Republican leaders also believe that their position with socially conservative voters is still stable. As one evangelical leader was reportedly told at the convention, “Where else will your people go?” A floor fight over the weakening of pro-choice platform language was originally expected, with efforts led by Family Research Council President Tony Perkins. As it turned out, the assassination attempt on President Trump quieted any opposition.
The politics of a large democratic republic like the United States requires building broad coalitions which inevitably involve compromise. These coalitions also change over time as the electorate changes. Social conservatives were not always a significant voting bloc of the Republican Party (or the American conservative movement, for that matter), and there are signs that they may have already lost that status. The political Right is undergoing massive realignment, as recent elections and the new priorities of the 2024 Republican platform demonstrate.
But this realignment doesn’t mean that social conservatives should give up any hope of influencing the political process. Truths about life, marriage, the family, and religious liberty are still politically relevant and foundational to any healthy society. They are pre-political and important regardless of their recognition by any political party.
Does it mean that social conservatives should abandon Republicans for other options, like the staunchly pro-life American Solidarity Party? Different races and different election cycles may call for different strategies. What this realignment does mean is a change in how social conservatives engage the political realm. Regarding life, policies are being shaped at the state level.
Conservatives are going to have to be more assertive about their convictions, their moral reasons for holding them, and their arguments towards Republican politicians on why they should defend them while in office. For too long, some Republicans have counted on being able to give lip service to pro-life and pro-family policy (which they quickly abandoned while in office) in exchange for the social conservative vote. That calculus is going to change quickly, on both sides.
At a “God and Country Breakfast” at the convention, Vance said that “Social conservatives have a seat at this table and they always will so long as I have any influence in this party and President Trump, I know, agrees.” We’re going to need to hold them to that promise.
Second, conservatives must relearn the fluidity of the political process. This doesn’t mean that moral standards are thrown out the window. It means issues and priorities change. Elected leaders are not pastors, but they still have a moral responsibility to lead with justice and virtue both in their policy and their personal lives. This does mean that social conservatives will have to think strategically and institutionally about how to build winning coalitions.
Social conservatives must play the long game. Building solid coalitions will give them opportunities to persuade a majority of their fellow Americans about the dignity of all human life, the true definition of marriage, and why those truths are foundational for any just and healthy society.