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(The Guardian) In surprise victory, Democrat wins state House seat in deep red Alabama after campaign focused on reproductive rights
Last night, Democrats in Alabama did something they do not often do in the deeply conservative state: win a seat in the state house of representatives back from the GOP. And how they did it may be a sign of what we can expect to work with voters nationwide as Joe Biden stumps for a second term while trying to gain complete control of Congress in November. In the case of Alabama, the Democrat Marilyn Lands campaigned on repealing Alabama’s strict abortion ban and fully restoring access to in vitro fertilization, the fertility treatment that the Alabama supreme court briefly outlawed last month. Lands lost the race for the seat in the swing district just two years ago, but in last night’s special election triumphed with a more than 25% margin over the Republican candidate.
Why does this all matter? For Democrats, it’s the latest sign that voters remain uncomfortable with the implications of the supreme court’s 2022 decision overturning Roe v Wade, and those objections can be harnessed to make inroads even in the most inhospitable terrain, like Alabama. Whether Biden and his allies can repeat the act just over seven months from now is an open question.
Democrats and Biden campaign cheer surprise special election victory in Alabama
Just how did Marilyn Lands end up ousting Republicans from a suburban state house seat in northern Alabama? The Associated Press reports that the licensed counselor’s pitch to voters included the following demands: “Our legislature must repeal Alabama’s no-exceptions abortion ban, fully restore access to IVF, and protect the right to contraception.”
Voters liked what they heard, and so did the Democratic party at large. Here’s what chair Jaime Harrison had to say about Lands’s victory: Today’s election – one of the first since the devastating decision by the Alabama supreme court that stopped IVF care – was a referendum on Maga Republicans’ out-of-touch extremism on reproductive rights. Marilyn Lands’ victory demonstrates that voters aren’t going to sit idly by while Maga Republicans lay the groundwork for a national abortion ban.
And Julie Chavez Rodriguez, manager of Joe Biden’s re-election campaign: Last month, Alabamans lost access to fertility treatments because of Donald Trump. Tonight, the voters in Alabama’s 10th house district elected a pro-choice champion in Marilyn Lands, sending Trump and extreme Maga Republicans a clear message: they know exactly who’s to blame for restricting their ability to decide how and when to build their families and they’re ready to fight back. Trump overturned Roe vWade, paving the way for attacks on women’s freedoms like we saw in Alabama – now he’s running to ban abortion and gut access to IVF nationwide. Tonight’s results should serve as a major warning sign for Trump: voters will not stand for his attacks on reproductive healthcare. This November will be no different.
Last night, Democrats in Alabama did something they do not often do in the deeply conservative state: win a seat in the state house of representatives back from the GOP. And how they did it may be a sign of what we can expect to work with voters nationwide as Joe Biden stumps for a second term while trying to gain complete control of Congress in November. In the case of Alabama, the Democrat Marilyn Lands campaigned on repealing Alabama’s strict abortion ban and fully restoring access to in vitro fertilization, the fertility treatment that the Alabama supreme court briefly outlawed last month. Lands lost the race for the seat in the swing district just two years ago, but in last night’s special election triumphed with a more than 25% margin over the Republican candidate.
Why does this all matter? For Democrats, it’s the latest sign that voters remain uncomfortable with the implications of the supreme court’s 2022 decision overturning Roe v Wade, and those objections can be harnessed to make inroads even in the most inhospitable terrain, like Alabama. Whether Biden and his allies can repeat the act just over seven months from now is an open question.
Democrats and Biden campaign cheer surprise special election victory in Alabama
Just how did Marilyn Lands end up ousting Republicans from a suburban state house seat in northern Alabama? The Associated Press reports that the licensed counselor’s pitch to voters included the following demands: “Our legislature must repeal Alabama’s no-exceptions abortion ban, fully restore access to IVF, and protect the right to contraception.”
Voters liked what they heard, and so did the Democratic party at large. Here’s what chair Jaime Harrison had to say about Lands’s victory: Today’s election – one of the first since the devastating decision by the Alabama supreme court that stopped IVF care – was a referendum on Maga Republicans’ out-of-touch extremism on reproductive rights. Marilyn Lands’ victory demonstrates that voters aren’t going to sit idly by while Maga Republicans lay the groundwork for a national abortion ban.
And Julie Chavez Rodriguez, manager of Joe Biden’s re-election campaign: Last month, Alabamans lost access to fertility treatments because of Donald Trump. Tonight, the voters in Alabama’s 10th house district elected a pro-choice champion in Marilyn Lands, sending Trump and extreme Maga Republicans a clear message: they know exactly who’s to blame for restricting their ability to decide how and when to build their families and they’re ready to fight back. Trump overturned Roe vWade, paving the way for attacks on women’s freedoms like we saw in Alabama – now he’s running to ban abortion and gut access to IVF nationwide. Tonight’s results should serve as a major warning sign for Trump: voters will not stand for his attacks on reproductive healthcare. This November will be no different.