Before You Vote, Know Where Your Candidates Stand on Abortion (and Economy and Healthcare and Education and Immigration and…)

Attendees watch Sen. Pete Ricketts (R-Neb.) and Dan Osborn, nonpartisan candidate for U.S. Senate, participate in a debate at the Nebraska State Fair in Grand Island on Sept. 1, 2026. (Nikos Frazier / Omaha World-Herald via Getty Images)

A candidate for the U.S. House in Florida and the hosts of an antiabortion podcast recently debated whether abortion bans should include exceptions for rape and incest. The candidate said he hoped people in those circumstances would choose “to have the baby,” citing his belief that God could take a crime and make “something incredible” out of it.

With 23 days left to vote in the ongoing midterm elections, Americans deserve to know where the candidates seeking to represent them stand on the issues they care about. And while Florida is often written off in conversations about reproductive freedom, a majority of voters—57.2 percent—supported protecting abortion rights in the state constitution. The amendment fell less than 3 percentage points short of the state threshold for passage.

That high support must be part of the conversation. Support for reproductive freedom exists even in places where abortion remains heavily restricted. And voters have the right to know their candidates’ beliefs on abortion and reproductive healthcare access. Would they protect access to abortion when a pregnancy threatens a patient’s life? What about a pregnancy resulting from rape? Would they support federal restrictions or protect access to care?

There are tools to help voters do that homework.

Pinellas County voters at the Coliseum polling precinct on Nov. 8, 2022, in St. Petersburg, Fla. (Octavio Jones / Getty Images)

Guides.vote produces nonpartisan voter guides with the help of experienced editors, researchers and veteran journalists. The guides provide information about candidates’ positions on issues and are designed to help voters compare candidates before casting their ballots. They also link to sources, so readers can learn more about the statements and records behind the comparisons.

A screenshot of the interactive voter guide for the Arizona governor’s race. (guides.vote)

These guides are available digitally and in print, with many offered in both English and Spanish. Guides.vote currently includes 2026 election information for selected races in 24 states. Its coverage includes U.S. Senate and House races, governor’s races, state supreme court elections and other state races.

The organization includes candidates who are polling at 15 percent or more. Its 2026 guides address issues including abortion, climate change, criminal justice, education, healthcare, immigration, labor, LGBTQ+ rights, taxes, gun laws and voting rules.

A 2026 Maine U.S. Senate voters guide on Susan Collins (R) and Troy Jackson (D). (guides.vote)

The site also includes guides from previous election years, so readers should check the year and election date when looking up a race.

Rather than telling voters how to vote, the guides provide information that voters can use to make their own decisions.

A 2026 New York U.S. House voters guide, breaking down positions of Cait Conley (D) and Mike Lawler (R). (guides.vote)
A 2026 Pennsylvania U.S. House voters guide, breaking down positions of Scott Perry (R) and Janelle Stelson (D). (guides.vote)

This article was adapted from a piece originally published on the Feminist Newswire, a product of FMF.

*

A note from Ms. editors: We want to hear from you for The Majority, a new campaign collecting stories about how reproductive freedom has enabled readers to build the lives they want and need.

Poll after poll shows a majority of Americans support reproductive healthcare access. Yet public debate overlooks the lives shaped by abortion access, contraception, IVF, miscarriage care, maternal healthcare or comprehensive sex education—countless women who chose to pursue an education, have children, not have children, protect their health and chart their own future. What’s your reproductive freedom story? Add your voice. Together, these stories will help show not only why reproductive freedom remains a majority value, but also what it makes possible. 

About and

Roxanne Szal (or Roxy) is the managing digital editor at Ms. and a producer on the Ms. podcast On the Issues With Michele Goodwin. She is also a mentor editor for The OpEd Project. Before becoming a journalist, she was a Texas public school English teacher. She was raised in Bucks County, Pa., studied political science and philosophy at Rollins College for undergrad, and received her master's degree in journalism from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She was is based in Austin, Texas. Connect with her on LinkedIn.
Kiara Green is a policy and research intern at Feminist Majority Foundation (publisher of Ms.).