Press Release
NARAL Pro-Choice America Endorses Rep. Tim Ryan for Election to the U.S. Senate
For Immediate Release: Wednesday, February 23, 2022
Contact: [email protected]
Rep. Ryan earns endorsement of nation’s leading reproductive freedom advocacy group
Washington, DC — Today, NARAL Pro-Choice America announced its endorsement of U.S. Representative Tim Ryan in his bid to become Ohio’s next U.S. Senator. Rep. Ryan currently represents Ohio’s 13th Congressional District, a seat he has held since 2003.
NARAL Pro-Choice America President Mini Timmaraju released the following statement:
NARAL Pro-Choice America is proud to endorse Representative Tim Ryan in his campaign to represent Ohio in the U.S. Senate. Over the course of his career, Rep. Ryan came to believe that we must trust pregnant people and families to make the best decision for their lives. Because of this, he has fought for the fundamental rights of his constituents by advocating for reproductive freedom and fighting back against restrictions on abortion access. With the anti-choice supermajority on the Supreme Court poised to end Roe v. Wade and reproductive freedom under attack across the country like never before, it is imperative to elect leaders like Tim Ryan to the Senate. He is the leader Ohio needs to protect and expand access to abortion.”
Rep. Tim Ryan released the following statement:
“I’m proud to have the support of NARAL, and to be an ally in the fight to protect reproductive freedom. As the Supreme Court considers the most direct threat to Roe v. Wade in a generation and states like Ohio work to pass increasingly extreme and uncompromising abortion restrictions, it is so important that our Senate majority fight to keep the heavy hand of government out of these personal decisions. In the Senate, I’ll keep working to codify Roe and to make sure every judge we put on the bench is committed to protecting this essential right.”
Rep. Ryan has taken action to protect and advance reproductive freedom, including access to abortion care, earning him a consistent 100% on NARAL’s Congressional Record on Reproductive Freedom since 2010. Last year, Rep. Ryan cosponsored and voted to pass the Women’s Health Protection Act (WHPA), which would protect the right to abortion nationally, creating a right for healthcare providers to provide abortion care and a corresponding right for people to receive that care, free from bans and medically unnecessary restrictions.
As a member of the House Appropriations Committee, Rep. Ryan voted to advance historic federal spending bills advancing reproductive freedom by eliminating the discriminatory Hyde Amendment, the Weldon denial of the care restriction, and the DC abortion ban, and permanently blocking the global gag rule. He has also cosponsored several critical pieces of legislation to safeguard and expand abortion access, including the Equal Access to Abortion Coverage in Health Insurance (EACH) Act, which expands coverage for abortion care without restrictions based on a person’s income, location, or insurance provider, and would end the discriminatory Hyde Amendment, and the Global HER Act, which would permanently end the anti-choice global gag rule.
The fight for reproductive freedom faces a pivotal moment, underscoring the importance of electing leaders who will fight for our fundamental rights. The anti-choice supermajority on the Supreme Court is currently considering a direct challenge to Roe in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, a case regarding Mississippi’s 15-week abortion ban.
If Roe fell tomorrow, 28 states—including Ohio—are expected to take action to prohibit abortion outright. Of those, 12 states already have “trigger bans” in place which would ban abortion automatically if Roe is overturned. The people hurt most by attacks on reproductive freedom are those who already face barriers to accessing abortion care—including women; Black, Indigenous, and other people of color; those working to make ends meet; LGBTQ+ people; immigrants; young people; those living in rural communities; and people with disabilities.
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For over 50 years, NARAL Pro-Choice America has fought to protect and advance reproductive freedom at the federal and state levels—including access to abortion care, birth control, pregnancy and post-partum care, and paid family leave—for every body. NARAL is powered by its more than 2.5 million members from every state and congressional district in the country, representing the 8 in 10 Americans who support legal abortion.