We Decide: Planned Parenthood Action Fund 2020 Election Membership Forum to Focus on Abortion and Reproductive Rights
For Immediate Release: June 12, 2019
2020 Candidates to address 800 PPAF members in South Carolina on June 22.
NowThis will livestream the full event.
WASHINGTON — Today, Planned Parenthood Action Fund (PPAF) is announcing We Decide: 2020 Election Membership Forum, an event on Saturday, June 22. We Decide will give 2020 presidential candidates the chance to speak to PPAF members – a critical group for anyone aiming for the White House – about their plan to protect and expand abortion access and other reproductive health care. The event will be held concurrent with the South Carolina Democratic Convention, in Columbia, SC.
The event launches as it becomes clear abortion access is the “key issue for the 2020 elections.” A record-high 77 percent of Americans say they do not want to see Roe overturned, and there is no state in this country where banning abortion is popular. This matters in early primary states: a new CNN poll of likely Iowa Democratic caucus participants showed that support for abortion rights is the top issue for voters, with 8 in 10 voters calling it a “must have,” including 85% of women.
NowThis will livestream the full event so reproductive-rights voters around the country can tune in.
Statement from Kelley Robinson, Executive Director of Planned Parenthood Action Fund
Health care is not a political game, it’s not a privilege for those who can afford it – it’s a right for all. We at Planned Parenthood Action Fund are thrilled to host “We Decide: 2020 Election Membership Forum” for our members – this is the first event of its kind that we’ve ever held. In the years since Roe v. Wade, reproductive health and rights have never been more threatened – and together, we know 2020 is our opportunity to protect and expand our rights for years to come. Public support for reproductive health care is at an all-time high. Anyone who wants to lead the United States must address how they will protect and expand access to abortion, birth control, cancer screenings, and STI testing and treatment. This forum gives candidates the chance to hear from and speak directly to reproductive-rights voters.
“It’s crystal-clear that access to reproductive health care – including safe, legal abortion – is a top issue heading into 2020. If the 13 million+ Planned Parenthood supporters turn out to the polls and activate their networks, they can tip the 2020 election.
Statement from Jenny Black, CEO of Planned Parenthood Votes! South Atlantic
Protecting patients' access to care is our top priority. Planned Parenthood Votes! South Atlantic is excited to have 2020 presidential candidates on stage, presenting their plans to protect and expand access to reproductive rights and health care. For over fifty years, Planned Parenthood South Atlantic in South Carolina has served thousands of patients each year – providing critical health care – including safe, legal abortion. In the face of attacks, we won’t back down from defending the rights of these patients.
In 2019, 20 abortion bans have passed in a dozen states. Missouri and Alabama passed some of the most extreme abortion bans we’ve seen since Roe v. Wade, with egregious criminal penalties against doctors. Georgia, Louisiana, Ohio, Kentucky, and Mississippi have passed six-week bans this year. This is all part of a concerted strategy to ban abortion outright by overturning Roe v. Wade. Long-standing threats to abortion access triggered a counter-movement – in 2019, more than 25 states introduced 85 bold policies that protect and expand access to abortion. In states like New York and Illinois, advocates codified Roe, ensuring abortion remains a right in their state no matter what happens in Washington.
Already, 1 in 3 women of reproductive age lives in a state where abortion could be outlawed if Roe is overturned. That’s over 25 million people. While these bans affect all of us, they will hit people struggling to make ends meet the hardest — people who can’t afford to take unpaid time off work, secure child care, and cross state lines to access safe and legal abortion. While some wealthy people may be able to find a way around abortion bans, far too many people — particularly people of color and LGBTQ people — will be left with no options at all.
The administration has also tried to block patients from Planned Parenthood health centers, tried to allow health care discrimination against transgender people and people who have had an abortion, introduced a rule that would allow bosses to decide whether insurance covers birth control, stacked the federal courts with anti-abortion, anti-LGBTQ and anti-birth control judges, tried to eliminate the Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program, proposed a rule to eliminate protections for survivors of sexual assault, and more.
78 percent of South Carolinians oppose banning abortion – yet that’s just what Republican leadership is attempting to do. South Carolina has introduced some of the most extreme anti-abortion legislation in the country. This includes repeatedly attempting to pass a “personhood” bill that Governor Henry McMaster supports, and having placed restriction after restriction on abortion access.
Candidates + 800 PPAF members will be in South Carolina, and thousands more via livestream. Confirmed 2020 candidates include:
- Vice President Joe Biden
- Senator Cory Booker
- Mayor Pete Buttigieg
- Secretary Julián Castro
- Senator Kirsten Gillibrand
- Senator Kamala Harris
- Governor John Hickenlooper
- Governor Jay Inslee
- Congressman Tim Ryan
- Senator Bernie Sanders
- Congressman Eric Swalwell
###
Planned Parenthood Action Fund is an independent, nonpartisan, not-for-profit membership organization formed as the advocacy and political arm of Planned Parenthood Federation of America. The Action Fund engages in educational, advocacy and electoral activity, including grassroots organizing, legislative advocacy, and voter education.