By Jamie Bulen and Monica Ciolfi
On Tuesday, Granite Staters will vote in the state Primary to select their political party nominees to face opponents in the General Election on November 8. For voters in Executive Council District 2, abortion rights are on the ballot both times because the Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe v. Wade means state politicians now control the future of reproductive rights.
It is not enough to vote against extreme Republican policies in November; voters who prioritize reproductive freedom should also focus on the Democratic Primary.
In Executive Council District 2, Councilor Cinde Warmington faces an opponent who cannot hold a candle to her leadership and effectiveness in fighting for reproductive rights.
New Hampshire’s Executive Council is a colonial institution that acts like a board of directors for the governor, voting on gubernatorial appointees as well as state and federal contracts over $10,000. In 2020, with the help of Governor Chris Sununu, a Republican majority was elected to the Executive Council. This Council has since voted four times to defund family planning services at clinics that provide comprehensive reproductive health care to thousands of low-income and uninsured Granite Staters.
These anti-abortion Councilors are determined to hobble abortion providers, even if it means that women who can barely make ends meet are deprived of essential preventative health care like birth control, cancer screenings, and STI testing and treatment. Some of these Republicans even want to deny state contracts to clinics that simply refer patients elsewhere for abortion services.
And what has our self-proclaimed “pro-choice” Governor done about it? Nothing.
Councilor Warmington has been the lone vote and voice of reason on these family planning contracts, explaining their value to over 16,000 vulnerable Granite Staters. Cinde Warmington is a trusted advocate for women’s health care; She is our choice to protect reproductive rights.
But we know Councilor Warmington can’t do this critical work alone.
Chris Sununu, who signed New Hampshire’s first abortion ban in modern times, is seeking a fourth term as Governor. Sununu’s Republican Party is the one that refused to include rape and incest exceptions in its abortion ban. It’s the Party that wants rapists to have a say in whether their victims can even get an abortion. It’s the one that wants a 6-week abortion ban, a point when many women don’t even know they are pregnant.
Voters who value reproductive freedom have a clear choice: vote for Democrat Dr. Tom Sherman. As a state representative and then state senator, Sherman has proven he’s a leader who can be trusted to protect access to health care. Senator Sherman understands that abortion is health care and will champion reproductive rights.
It’s time to retire Chris Sununu along with his anti-choice partners and policies.
New Hampshire is the only State in New England without safeguards for abortion rights in our state laws or constitution. We can’t change that unless we elect leaders like Councilor Warmington and Dr. Sherman who will protect and expand access to the full range of reproductive health care – no matter what.
Women in post-Roe states led by anti-abortion politicians are being forced to travel many hundreds of miles for care – if they can afford it. Women miscarrying wanted pregnancies, in distress, have been turned away from hospitals because they were not sick enough or their doomed fetus, lacking a skull, was not dead yet. Young girls, impregnated by assailants and seeking abortion, have been forced to travel with their parents to neighboring states.
This is the future anti-abortion Republican politicians envision for our entire country. Former Vice President Mike Pence, who regularly visits New Hampshire, has called for outlawing abortion from the moment of conception, saying, “we cannot rest until abortion is outlawed in every State.”
We cannot expect Sununu to stand up to the extremists in his own Party; his signature of an abortion ban and failure to secure the votes for family planning contracts is evidence he will continue to fail us on reproductive health access issues.
The nation’s moment of crisis over abortion is playing out in New Hampshire and choice is on the ballot like never before. And be certain of this: in addition to the direct physical harm caused by this anti-abortion zealotry, there is the lasting, systemic economic harm to girls, women, and families. Study after study reveal that abortion restrictions cause the gender pay gap to widen and increase the likelihood of poverty.
As you head to the polls next Tuesday and again in November, choose wisely; Councilor Cinde Warmington and Dr. Tom Sherman are the clear choice for reproductive choice.
Jamie Bulen
Monica Ciolfi
Ms. Bulen and Ms. Ciolfi are former, long-time Board members of NARAL Pro-Choice NH. They both live in Concord, NH.
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