Press Release
NARAL Pro-Choice America Applauds Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear for Vetoing Dangerous Anti-Choice Bill
Washington, DC — Today, Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear vetoed an extreme and sweeping anti-choice bill (HB 3) that includes a number of provisions attacking abortion access, including attacks on medication abortion care as well as a 15-week ban on abortion.
NARAL Pro-Choice America President Mini Timmaraju released the following statement in response:
“We applaud Gov. Beshear for vetoing this cruel and extreme attack on abortion access. As anti-choice state lawmakers in Kentucky and across the country remain laser-focused on undermining abortion rights and access, we need leaders like Gov. Beshear to step up and protect our fundamental freedoms now more than ever. We’re grateful for Gov. Beshear’s leadership in this pivotal moment in the fight for reproductive freedom.”
In 2019, NARAL endorsed Governor Beshear in his run for governor. In the weeks leading up to the election in Kentucky, NARAL ran an independent expenditure including public polling and a five-figure ad buy to slam then-Gov. Bevin for his stance on reproductive freedom and support for criminalizing abortion. NARAL also turned out members to canvass, make calls, and volunteer for the Beshear campaign.
The stakes for reproductive freedom are higher than ever before. In the coming months, the Supreme Court will rule in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization—a case concerning Mississippi’s 15-week abortion ban that directly challenges Roe v. Wade and threatens to end the constitutional right to abortion. If the Court upholds Mississippi’s ban, the constitutional right to abortion will cease to exist as we know it. Should Roe fall, 28 states would likely take action to prohibit abortion outright. Of those, 13 states already have “trigger bans” in place, which would automatically ban abortion.
Even as Roe stands, state lawmakers across the country are working harder than ever to roll back abortion access and find new and increasingly cruel ways to ban and restrict abortion. Anti-choice lawmakers have already introduced over 500 restrictions on abortion this year, including bans on abortion at 15 weeks of pregnancy, bans modeled after Texas’ vigilante-enforced ban on abortion, and restrictions on medication abortion care. The people hurt most by abortion restrictions are those who already face barriers to accessing the care they need—including women; Black, Indigenous, and 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.