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Press Release
NARAL Pro-Choice America Endorses Slate of Reproductive Freedom Champions for Congress
For Immediate Release: August 14, 2020
Contact: [email protected]
Four Texas Candidates Earn Endorsements from Nation’s Leading Pro-Choice Advocacy Group
NARAL Pro-Choice America today announced its endorsement of four Congressional candidates in Texas ahead of the November general election: Sima Ladjevardian (TX-02), Stephen Daniel (TX-06), Mike Siegel (TX-10) and Candace Valenzuela (TX-24). All four candidates are seeking to flip seats currently held by anti-choice Republican incumbents.
“NARAL and our 41,000 members in Texas are thrilled to throw our full support behind these four candidates in this critical fight to protect and expand our House majority in support of reproductive freedom,” said NARAL Pro-Choice America President Ilyse Hogue. “For too long my home state of Texas has been led by out-of-touch politicians pushing an extreme ideological agenda. Luckily for Texans, all four candidates we’re endorsing today are committed to safeguarding the right to abortion, and can be trusted to fight for every body’s freedom to make their own decisions about their families and their futures.”
Background on the candidates
- Sima Ladjevardian (TX-02) is an attorney, activist, and breast cancer survivor who is seeking to unseat anti-choice Republican incumbent Rep. Daniel Crenshaw. Crenshaw earned a 0% score from NARAL in the 2019 Congressional Record on Choice.
- Stephen Daniel (TX-06) is an attorney and small business owner seeking to unseat anti-choice Republican incumbent Rep. Ronald Wright. Wright earned a 0% score from NARAL in the 2019 Congressional Record on Choice.
- Mike Siegel (TX-10) is a civil rights lawyer and former public school teacher who most recently served as Austin city attorney. Siegel is seeking to unseat anti-choice Republican incumbent Rep. Michael McCaul. McCaul earned a 0% score from NARAL in the 2019 Congressional Record on Choice.
- Candace Valenzuela (TX-24) is an educator and a lifelong Texan. In November, she’ll face anti-choice Republican Beth Van Duyne in this open seat. Van Duyne is backed by extreme anti-choice groups like the Susan B. Anthony List.
“I am honored to have NARAL standing with me in this fight for Houston’s families,” said Sima Ladjevardian, candidate for Texas’ Second Congressional District. “Every woman deserves the freedom to make her own health care decisions without meddling anti-choice politicians like Dan Crenshaw getting in the way. Texas women already must overcome extraordinary barriers in order to practice their right to choose and Congressman Crenshaw is making it harder. With NARAL’s support, we are one step closer to ousting Crenshaw, stopping his attacks on our rights, and protecting health care for Houston women.
“I believe decisions about a woman’s health are between her and her doctor,” said Stephen Daniel, candidate for Texas’ Sixth Congressional District.. “Having spent time working for the lawyer who won Roe vs. Wade, I understand how hard generations of women have struggled to win this right.”
“My mother taught me the importance of the fight for bodily autonomy, as a matter of human rights. I’m honored to be endorsed by NARAL Pro-Choice America,” said Mike Siegel, candidate for Texas’ 10th Congressional District. “We must resist politicians like Michael McCaul who want to invade our privacy and interfere with reproductive choice. Together we will protect access to abortion and ensure the health and safety of every Texan.”
“I am proud to have the endorsement of NARAL,” said Candace Valenzuela, candidate for Texas’ 24th Congressional District. “Texas is on the frontlines in the battle to secure reproductive freedom, and NARAL does important work defending the right to choose right here in our community and across the country. In Congress, I’ll work with NARAL to ensure every woman has the right to choose and to secure robust and desperately needed paid family leave for all.”
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NARAL Pro-Choice America and its network of state affiliates and chapters are dedicated to protecting and expanding reproductive freedom for all. For more than 50 years, NARAL has worked to guarantee that every woman has the right to make personal decisions regarding the full range of reproductive choices, including preventing unintended pregnancy, bearing healthy children, and choosing legal abortion. Since 1969, NARAL has made history, grown to over 2.5 million members, and met the moments that have defined this fight with action, power, and freedom. In recognition of its work defending our constitutional right to choose, Fortune Magazine described NARAL as “one of the top 10 advocacy groups in America.”