John Kerry Won’t Run in 2008, Abortion Caused 2004 Election Defeat 
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by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
January 24, 2007
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) — Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry, who narrowly lost a presidential bid in 2004, said Wednesday he will not seek the party’s nomination for president next year. President Bush defeated the senator in part because of Kerry’s pro-abortion views and refusal to back limits on abortion.
News of Kerry’s intention made its way to the press when a leading Democratic official told the media he intends to seek re-election to his Senate seat.
Kerry planned an afternoon speech on the floor of the Senate to highlight and explain his decision.
As recently as October, Kerry said Americans should give him a second chance to try to capture the presidency. Kerry says it is a basic principle of the United States that "Americans give people a second chance" — especially in politics.
Kerry lost to President Bush in 2004 in part because of his pro-abortion views. During one televised debate, Kerry refused the pleas of one voter to at least support limiting taxpayer funding for abortions.
A 2004 Wirthlin Worldwide post-election poll found that 42 percent of voters said abortion affected the way they voted for president. Twenty-four percent of voters cast their ballots for President Bush while 15% voted for Kerry, giving Bush a 9 percent advantage on the issue of abortion.
Eight percent of voters in the Wirthlin poll indicated abortion was the "most important" issue affecting their votes and Bush won among those voters by a six to two percent margin, leading Kerry by four percentage points among the most intense abortion voters.
With the senator out of the field of candidates, contenders such as pro-abortion Sens. Hillary Clinton of New York and Barack Obama of Illinois and Kerry’s running mate, pro-abortion former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards, are leading the Democratic field.
Other possible Democratic candidates include New Mexico Governor BIll Richardson, former Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack, Connecticut Sen. Chris Dodd, and Delaware Sen. Joe Biden. They each favor abortion and forcing taxpayers to fund embryonic stem cell research.
Edwards has a 10 percentage point advantage among Iowa Democrats, according to a new Zogby Poll. The survey also finds Obama leading in New Hampshire with Clinton a close second.
The Iowa poll has Edwards leading with the support of 27 percent of likely Democratic caucus-goers. He has a 10 percentage point lead over his nearest competition. Obama follows at 17 percent and favorite son Vilsack has the backing of 16 percent.
