(CNSNews.com) – The number of pro-life Republican women in the House of Representatives will more than double in 2021, in another likely disappointment for Speaker Nancy Pelosi who has yet to see her prediction of an increased Democratic majority materialize.
“We’re so proud of these women who will be a bold voice for moms and unborn babies on Capitol Hill & we look forward to working with them to save lives!” tweeted the Susan B. Anthony List.
At least 14 pro-life women have won Houses races, and in seven cases they flipped Democrat-held seats: Maria Salazar (Fla.), Yvette Herrell (N.M.), Michelle Fischbach (Minn.), Nancy Mace (S.C.), Stephanie Bice (Okla.), Ashley Hinson (Iowa), and Nicole Malliotakis (N.Y.)
The other seven pro-life GOP women who have won seats were Lauren Boebert (Colo.), Lisa McClain (Mich.), Kat Cammack (Fla.), Diana Harshbarger (Tenn.), Mary Miller (Ill.), Marjorie Taylor Greene (Ga.), and Victoria Spartz (Ind.)
And their number looks set to increase further still:
--Claudia Tenney is leading in her race in New York’s 22nd Congressional District
--Young Kim is leading in California’s 39th Congressional District
--Michelle Steel is leading in California’s 48th Congressional District
--Mariannette Miller-Meeks is leading in Iowa’s 2nd Congressional District
--Beth Van Duyne is leading in Texas’ 24th Congressional District
The newcomers will join incumbent pro-life Republican women who won re-election on Tuesday: Reps. Ann Wagner (Mo.), Carol Miller (W.V.), Cathy McMorris Rogers (Wash.), Debbie Lesko (Ariz.), Jackie Walorski (Ind.), Kay Granger (Tex.), Liz Cheney (Wyo.), Vicky Hartzler (Mo.), Virginia Foxx (Mo.), Elise Stefanik (N.Y.), and Jaime Herrera Beutler (Wash.)
“The surge of victorious pro-life women candidates in the U.S. House is a stunning blow to Nancy Pelosi and her pro-abortion agenda,” SBA List president Marjorie Dannenfelser said in a statement.
“This is a resounding victory for pro-life women everywhere and an enormous advancement of Susan B. Anthony List’s mission. We expect when all votes are counted and the races are called, we will have a record number of pro-life women serving in the next Congress. These gains are a repudiation of abortion extremism and further evidence that life is a winning issue in politics.”
In the outgoing House, Democrats hold 232 seats and Republicans 197.
As polls were closing on Tuesday evening, Pelosi voiced optimism that her party would increase its majority, telling PBS NewsHour’s Judy Woodruff that some experts were predicting anywhere from five to 20 Democratic pickups.
While she declined to predict how many more seats Democrats would hold, she said, “I do study the numbers and I know we’ll have a substantial victory.”
“Our goal was to hold the House, and increase our numbers,” Pelosi said. “We will do just that.”
As of early Thursday, however, Republicans have picked up six seats in the House. NBC News is projecting a 117th Congress with 226 Democrat and 209 Republican members of the House.