COLUMBUS, OH – Today, Sherrod Brown and Connie Schultz joined women’s rights activist and writer Gloria Steinem, Issue 1 Leader Kellie Copeland, and Ohioan Katie May for a Zoom press conference to mark the two-year anniversary of the Dobbs v. Jackson Supreme Court decision that overturned Roe v. Wade to discuss the stakes of abortion rights this election.
“Ohio women understand the stakes of this election and the choice ahead of them is clear: I will always support a woman’s right to make her own healthcare decisions while my opponent wants to overrule voters with a national abortion ban,” said Sherrod.
“Before Sherrod and I started dating, I looked up his voting record on two issues and it had to be 100% or I wasn’t even going to meet him for coffee. One of them was abortion rights,” said Connie Schultz. “These issues matter so deeply to me.”
“Abortion rights are the most basic issue of democracy because we know that women, and men too, support the right to reproductive freedom and bodily integrity. It’s at least as basic as freedom of speech and, perhaps, more subject to health concerns,” said women’s rights activist and writer Gloria Steinem. “It is very important for a state like Ohio. I feel very proud of coming from Toledo. We always stood up for this fundamental right. It is about our health, our safety, our control over our own lives, nothing could be more basic and I want to do whatever I can to help.”
“I know Sherrod. And I’ve seen firsthand his commitment to reproductive rights and the issues that matter most to Ohio women. Sherrod has never wavered from doing the right thing, whether voting consistently to support reproductive rights and women’s healthcare, fighting efforts to roll back abortion rights, standing with us to pass Issue 1 last November, or always fighting to make sure hard work pays off for all workers,” said Issue 1 leader Kellie Copeland.
“We can’t risk giving Bernie Moreno the power to roll back our rights and freedoms and insert politicians into our doctors’ offices. I deserve the right to make healthcare decisions for myself and my family without the government interfering. Personal decisions about reproductive healthcare, birth control, IVF treatments and so much more should be mine, not the government’s, to make,” said Ohioan Katie May.
While Sherrod stands with the majority of Ohioans who believe women’s healthcare decisions should be between them and their doctors, Bernie Moreno supports overturning the will of Ohioans with a national abortion ban and has said he’s “100% pro-life with no exceptions.”
Sherrod has always fought for a woman’s right to make their own healthcare decisions:
- Sherrod supported the November Issue 1 campaign to establish abortion rights in the Ohio Constitution.
- Sherrod introduced the Women’s Health Protection Act of 2023 to enshrine abortion access and restore reproductive health care throughout the country.
- Sherrod supported the Right to IVF Act to protect access to fertility treatments, including in-vitro fertilization and the Right to Contraception Act.
- Sherrod introduced the Freedom to Travel for Health Care Act of 2022 to prevent anti-choice states from disrupting travel for abortion care.
While Sherrod fights for Ohio women, Bernie Moreno said he would overturn the will of Ohioans by voting for a national abortion ban and opposes all exceptions:
- American Journal: Ohio senate candidate Bernie Moreno: “Absolute pro-life no exceptions.”
- NBC: Ohio GOP Senate candidates pitch federal abortion bans even after voters protected reproductive rights
- Moreno voted against Issue 1 last year in Ohio, which included protections for contraception and fertility treatments.
- Moreno called the Dobbs decision a “monumental victory.”
Media can download video of today’s Zoom press conference HERE.
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