Planned Parenthood Maine Action Fund PAC Endorses Jim Boyle in State House Special Election
For Immediate Release: Dec. 13, 2021
The Planned Parenthood Maine Action Fund PAC is endorsing Jim Boyle of Gorham in the State House District 27 special election to be held next month.
“With the impending loss of Roe v Wade, access to abortion will vary widely from state to state. We cannot afford to elect legislators who are hostile or indifferent to our health and rights,” said Nicole Clegg, spokesperson for the Planned Parenthood Maine Action Fund PAC. “As a state senator, Jim Boyle had a 100% voting record with the Planned Parenthood Maine Action Fund and he will be a strong voice for reproductive health and rights as a state representative. The Planned Parenthood Maine Action Fund PAC is proud to endorse his candidacy for the state house.”
For the first time ever, U.S. states enacted more than 100 abortion restrictions in a single year, including the draconian Texas abortion ban outlawing abortion at six weeks (before many people even know they are pregnant) and creating a vigilante bounty system for individuals to sue anyone helping a Texan obtain an abortion and collect $10,000.
Maine is not immune from these attacks: anti-abortion legislators introduced an unprecedented number of bills this year attacking abortion care in Maine. With a majority of legislators supportive of access to abortion, the House and Senate defeated all of the bills, but the makeup of the legislature could change with the next election -- giving anti-abortion politicians in Maine another chance to restrict or ban abortion as Texas has.
The Supreme Court failed to intervene to stop the Texas abortion ban and in oral arguments on December 1, a majority of justices signaled their support for Mississippi’s 15-week abortion ban in the case Jackson Women’s Health v. Dobbs that could be used to reverse or further dismantle the legal right to an abortion guaranteed by Roe v. Wade.
A recent Maine poll found that no matter respondents’ personal feelings about abortion, they want the experience of getting an abortion to be supportive (83%), affordable (79%), available in your community (79%), without added burdens (76%), and covered by insurance (70%).
The special election for state House District 27 will be held Tuesday, January 11th, 2022. Voters in HD 27 can request an absentee ballot from the Secretary of State’s office or vote early in-person at their town offices during regular office hours.
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The Planned Parenthood Maine Action Fund Political Action Committee promotes and preserves a health care landscape and a political climate favorable to women’s health by working to identify and elect supportive candidates seeking executive and legislative offices. The PPMEAF PAC is operated by the Planned Parenthood Maine Action Fund, an independent, nonpartisan, not-for-profit membership organization formed as the advocacy and political arm of Planned Parenthood of Northern New England in Maine. The Action Fund engages in educational and electoral activity, including voter education, grassroots organizing, and legislative advocacy.