Democrat Marilyn Lands won a state House special in deep red Alabama by making reproductive rights the center of her campaign.
CNN reported:
Lands, a licensed professional counselor who lost her bid for the Huntsville-area seat in 2022 by nearly 7 points, opposes the state’s near-total ban on abortion and has openly discussed the abortion she has had more than 20 years ago after the fetus tested positive for a rare genetic disease.
His opponent, Republican Teddy Powell, a two-term Madison city councilman, avoided discussing abortion rights and focused his campaign on economic development, infrastructure and education funding. Powell described himself as “pro-life” but said he might be open to considering legislation to add exceptions for rape and incest to Alabama’s abortion ban.
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With 99% of the vote, Lands leads 62%-37% in a district that was +1 for Trump in 2020.
No matter how much the media and Republicans pretend otherwise, reproductive rights are a very important issue for voters. Alabama is one of the states that imposed an extreme abortion ban after Dobbs, and the state supreme court sparked a national storm when it banned in vitro fertilization.
Reproductive rights are an important issue. Alabama is by no means a swing state, but Democrats have shown they can win special elections, even in deeply red states, when reproductive rights are on the line.
Republicans have a reproductive rights problem, and it won’t go away in November.
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Jason is the managing editor. He is also a member of the White House press pool and a congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a bachelor’s degree in political science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
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