Polls close in Illinois, other states in first elections since blockbuster Supreme Court abortion ruling

Polls have closed in Illinois, Mississippi and Oklahoma, which are among eight states to hold elections Tuesday, the first since the Supreme Court’s monumental opinion overturned the landmark half century old Roe v. Wade abortion ruling.

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The move on Friday by the high court’s conservative majority, which opens the door for roughly two dozen states to quickly ban abortions, could upend November’s midterm elections, when the Democrats will be defending their razor-thin House and Senate majorities as they face historical headwinds as well as an extremely difficult political climate fueled by skyrocketing gas prices, soaring inflation and President Biden’s underwater approval ratings.

Tuesday’s primaries in New York State, Illinois, Colorado, Utah, and Oklahoma, runoff elections in Mississippi and South Carolina, and a special election in Nebraska, could provide a glimpse of how the blockbuster ruling may be reshaping political dynamics.

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Since most Republicans stand far apart from Democrats on the combustible issue of abortion, the campaign impact of the high court’s ruling will likely be felt in November rather than in the primaries, but Tuesday’s contests and the ensuing intra-party elections throughout the summer could give us a taste of enhanced turnout due to the issue, and may serve as a sign of things to come in the autumn.