Thousands of anti-abortion activists gathered at the snow-covered National Mall in Washington D.C. Friday for the annual March for Life.

The big picture: The rally, which is the second since Roe v. Wade was overturned, comes as Republicans wrestle with anti-abortion initiatives after losing a series of ballot measures.

• The upcoming presidential election could be heavily influenced by abortion politics, with candidates expected to use the issue as a rallying call to turn out voters.

Driving the news: House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) spoke at the rally, encouraging the opponents of abortion rights to "be encouraged" and "press on" in hopes that together they can "make this great difference."

• "We can stand with every woman for every child, and we can truly build a culture that cherishes and protects life," he said.
• Johnson added that he himself was the product of an unplanned pregnancy, and that his parents who were teens at the time, "chose life."

Zoom out: As lawmakers in the House are dueling over funding the government, Republicans under Johnson's leadership are pushing a pair of symbolic bills they said would protect pregnant women's rights, Axios' Victoria Knight reports.

• Democrats, meanwhile, say the bills would further erode abortion access and are a prelude to a nationwide abortion ban.

Go deeper: Roe anniversary reheats abortion wars