The Quickie: Georgia, Vote Like Your Future Depends on It — Because It Does 

Welcome to “The Quickie” — Planned Parenthood Action Fund’s daily tipsheet on the top health care & reproductive rights stories of the day. You can read “The Quickie'' online here.

In today’s Quickie: it’s election day in Georgia and reproductive rights are on the ballot; states that already ban abortion gear up to further restrict access in the new year. 

GEORGIA, VOTE LIKE YOUR FUTURE DEPENDS ON IT — BECAUSE IT DOES: Today is the final day for Georgians to head out to cast their ballots in the critical runoff election between Sen. Rev. Raphael Warnock and his anti-abortion opponent, Herschel Walker. Expanding the pro-reproductive freedom majority in the senate will mean that we can continue to make progress on supporting sexual and reproductive health, including abortion, and tackle big issues like voting rights. With abortion banned before most people even know they are pregnant and access to health care dangerously limited in Georgia, reproductive freedom continues to drive voters to the polls. Nalah Lewis, an organizer with Planned Parenthood Votes, which will knock on 75,000 doors before polls close tonight, spoke with NewsOne about the energy she’s seeing around reproductive freedom headed into today’s runoff, noting: 

“We heard talk about Roe being overturned, but I don’t think people knew the severity of it and how quickly it was going to hit directly to each state. What I’m seeing is definitely top five on the list of why people are coming out and showing out in massive numbers here in Georgia.” 

This weekend, Planned Parenthood Action Fund President Alexis McGill Johnson, visited Georgia to get out the vote by reminding voters of this election’s importance — particularly for reproductive rights and freedom writ large. In an op-ed published in The Atlanta Voice, she wrote about the role Black women will play in deciding the direction of Georgia and the country:

“Georgians have another chance to stop this sickening tide of restrictions that threaten the lives of Black women and families. We need leaders who are going to defend our freedom, not take it away. … When Black women turn out and vote, we bring the power to shift our society into one that honors and respects the choices all women make. Your ballot is your power — and when you show up on Tuesday, you’re demanding a better future for yourself, your family, and all Georgians.”

STATES WITH ABORTION BANS ALREADY GEARING UP TO FURTHER RESTRICT REPRO RIGHTS IN THE NEW YEAR: Yesterday, The 19th* previewed anti-abortion legislation to come in the new year across the country in state legislatures, even in states where abortion is already banned. State legislative sessions begin in the new year, but lawmakers may pre-file legislation, so we already have a sense of the ways in which anti-abortion politicians want to further restrict people’s right to bodily autonomy. 

In states with bans that are not yet total, lawmakers are seeking to pass total bans, such as in Florida and South Carolina. Other states with total bans are going even further, proposing bills that would criminalize pregnant people who seek abortions as well as abortion providers. Elsewhere in Idaho and Missouri, lawmakers are interested in limiting access to or banning emergency contraception, such as Plan B. 

Some states are looking to discourage interstate travel for abortion care without physically restricting travel. In Texas, for example, lawmakers will introduce two bills that prohibit government entities from giving a person money that may be used to seek an out-of-state abortion and eliminate state tax breaks for companies that fund out-of-state travel for abortions, respectively. Some states, like Missouri, are attempting to ban people from getting medication abortion from out-of-state. 

Read more at The 19th*.