Oklahoma Christians Hold Enemies of Equal Protection Accountable
Delegates who attended the Oklahoma Republican Party convention moved to censure four members of the State Senate who voted against SB 456, also known as the Abolition of Abortion in Oklahoma Act, during a meeting of the Oklahoma Senate Judiciary Committee earlier this year.
SB 456, introduced by Sen. Dusty Deevers (R), would have criminalized the act of abortion as homicide and provided equal protection to all preborn children from fertilization.
Republican Senators vote against abolition
Sen. Brent Howard (R), Sen. Todd Gollihare (R), Sen. Darcy Jech (R), and Sen. Paul Rosino (R) nevertheless voted against SB 456 alongside Sen. Mary Boren (D) and Sen. Michael Brooks (D), meaning the legislation failed to advance. The two other Republican members, Sen. Shane Jett (R) and Sen. Lisa Standridge (R), voted in favor of SB 456.
Delegates for the Oklahoma Republican Party considered a resolution “condemning and censuring” Gollihare, Jech, Rosino, and Howard for their vote against SB 456.
Video of the vote: pic.twitter.com/mRDll3JrW9
— Abolish Abortion Oklahoma 🌳🪓 (@AbolishAbortOK) May 3, 2025
The document observed that the failure of SB 456 to pass committee “means that self-managed abortion remains legal in Oklahoma, with an estimated 3,274 self-managed abortions occurring annually in our state under the color of our laws.”
Enemies of abolition censured
The resolution said that the four Republicans committed a “blatant violation” of both the Word of God and the platform of the Oklahoma Republican Party, which makes clear “civil authorities have a duty before God to uphold justice by establishing equal protection under the law for all preborn children” and calls for such a stance to be passed in the Oklahoma Legislature.
Delegates overwhelmingly voted to censure the four Republicans who refused to equally protect preborn babies under the law. The resolution said that the “Oklahoma Republican Party encourages Republicans in Oklahoma to withhold all support from their political careers.”
The successful censure vote indicates that the Christians and conservative grassroots are broadly on board with equal protection and abolition. Though many Republican lawmakers in conservative states continue to oppose abortion abolition, the strength of their opposition is waning, largely because the grassroots in such states desire a true end to legalized abortion.
The vote also shows that when Christians involve themselves in grassroots political efforts, their efforts bear good fruit. There are many Christian abolitionists in the state of Oklahoma who are politically involved and are serious about holding the enemies of equal protection accountable. Their hard work and dedication should be emulated across the country.