Press Release
NARAL Pro-Choice America Endorses Lieutenant Governor Mandela Barnes for U.S. Senate in Wisconsin
For Immediate Release: Friday, August 12, 2022
Contact: [email protected]
NARAL Pro-Choice America Endorses Lieutenant Governor Mandela Barnes for U.S. Senate in Wisconsin
Lt. Gov. Barnes earns endorsement of nation’s leading reproductive freedom advocacy group
Washington, DC — Today, NARAL Pro-Choice America announced its endorsement of Lieutenant Governor Mandela Barnes for U.S. Senate in Wisconsin. Barnes, a fierce leader for reproductive freedom, is running to unseat anti-choice incumbent Senator Ron Johnson in this highly contested election.
NARAL Pro-Choice America President Mini Timmaraju released the following statement:
“Senator Ron Johnson and his extremist colleagues have created an absolute crisis of access to abortion care. Wisconsin deserves better, and that’s why we’re proud to endorse Mandela Barnes in this vital race. Barnes’ presence in the Senate could mean the difference in finally passing the Women’s Health Protection Act and protecting the right to abortion throughout the country—so we know the stakes could not be higher. Our members are ready to roll up their sleeves and get to work to ensure Lieutenant Governor Barnes unseats Sen. Johnson this November.”
Lieutenant Governor Mandela Barnes, candidate for U.S. Senate, said:
“Like so many Wisconsinites, reproductive freedom is personal to me and personal to my family. I have always been, and always will be, deeply committed to fighting for abortion access for everyone to have the right to their own medical choices. I know we need to abolish the filibuster and take immediate action to protect reproductive rights. I’m proud to have the support of NARAL in this fight.”
Lieutenant Governor Barnes has been a bold leader in the fight for reproductive freedom. He has pledged his support for critical legislation to protect and expand reproductive freedom, including the Women’s Health Protection Act, and making birth control and contraception free and widely available. Barnes made history as Wisconsin’s first Black lieutenant governor, and if elected, he will become the first Black U.S. Senator to represent the state of Wisconsin.
Sen. Johnson has relentlessly pushed attacks on abortion access and reproductive freedom—including voting to confirm anti-choice ideologue Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court and signing onto an amicus brief in the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization case asking the Court to overturn Roe v. Wade. He even bragged about his role in stripping millions of Americans of their freedom to decide. Sen. Johnson’s dangerous and reckless attacks on reproductive freedom are a threat not only to the health and well-being of Wisconsinites but to all Americans.
In June, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in its decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization—ending the constitutional right to abortion and opening the door for extremist state lawmakers to put total bans on abortion in place. This decision is already having a devastating impact throughout the country as 14 states have begun enforcing extreme bans on abortion. The people hurt most by these bans and restrictions 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; the LGBTQ+ community; immigrants; young people; those living in rural communities; and people with disabilities.
These endorsements come as NARAL Pro-Choice America is ramping up its work to elect candidates up and down the ballot during a critical moment in the fight for reproductive freedom. NARAL, Planned Parenthood Action Fund, and EMILY’s List announced a partnership in May to collectively spend a historic $150 million on the 2022 midterms to elect reproductive freedom champions up and down the ballot across the country. Read more about NARAL’s endorsed candidates here.
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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 4 million members from every state and congressional district in the country, representing the 8 in 10 Americans who support legal abortion.