Weeks after a draft of Justice Samuel Alito's decision overturning abortion rights leaked in May, an extremely low turnout election in Texas' Rio Grande Valley served as a grand indicator of a massive red wave. Rep. Henry Cuellar, the lone anti-abortion Democrat serving in the House of Representatives, narrowly defeated progressive challenger Jessica Cisneros. His win was confirmed by recount nearly a month later. In the intervening weeks, however, a Republican flipped a neighboring Democratic seat in a special election. The narrative was set: Democrats are facing midterm disaster.
Then the Supreme Court's decision to overturn the landmark Roe v. Wade and Casey v. Planned Parenthood cases affirming a right to abortion in the U.S was made official, and a clear new pattern emerged: American voters are now fighting to protect what remains of abortion rights.
