(LifeSiteNews) — On April 1, Wisconsin citizens will vote in a high-stakes election for a Supreme Court seat that will decide the majority on the state’s highest court. The contest for the open seat is officially nonpartisan. However, the two candidates are sharply divided on abortion.  

Brad Shimel is endorsed by Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America and the Wisconsin-based Women Speak Out PAC. Pro-abortion organizations back Susan Crawford, who has represented Planned Parenthood in court proceedings. The election environment has the intensity of the 17 statewide voter referenda since the fall of Roe. The pro-life side has lost 14 of those ballots.

Susan B. Anthony and Woman Speak Out PAC have organized an intensive house-to-house canvassing campaign in support of Schimel.

This door-to-door engagement is a robust form of public square outreach. Unlike other forms of local outreach, such as pregnancy support, sidewalk counseling, and prayer vigils, canvassing engages the all-important middle range of the political spectrum that determines the outcomes of close elections. Other forms of local public square outreach at election time have included pro-life billboards, yard signs, and radio ads. 

Local public square outreach to influence the pro-life faithful, ardent abortion supporters, and the “mushy middle” has been common during the run-up to election days. However, once the votes are counted, the community engagement disappears. This reveals a weakness in the local pro-life movement. Sidewalk counseling, prayer vigils, and pregnancy support, with their focus on moms considering abortion, remain strong day to day, week to week throughout the year.  Public square outreach, focusing on the broad spectrum of our neighbors and fellow citizens, should also maintain a strong presence year-round. Our defeats in 14 of 17 statewide ballots since Dobbs have resulted in the demise of pro-life legislation and the loss of preborn lives. This is no time for complacency.

To expand public square outreach throughout the year, the leaders of Pro-Life Waco launched Pro-Life in the Public Square (PLPS) last October. Pro-Life Waco has delivered unrelenting public square outreach for three decades in central Texas. PLPS will encourage, equip, and financially support local public square outreach in cities of all sizes across America. Currently, Pro-Life in the Public Square offers three support initiatives: 

• 1) A free Quick Start Pack of signs and flyers for local CVS and Walgreen outreach,
• 2) below-cost pricing for community yard sign campaigns,
• 3) free sign designs and other support for billboards in small towns located along significant highways.  

The primary motivation for creating Pro-Life in the Public Square was the unprecedented launch of chemical abortion by pharmacy prescription. In March of 2024, CVS and Walgreens began filling abortion prescriptions in six states, with a commitment to expand to others.