For Immediate Release: Tuesday, August 24, 2021
Contact: [email protected]

93% of NARAL voters in the state have committed to voting NO in the recall attempt, which comes as the U.S. Supreme Court is set to consider a direct challenge to Roe v. Wade

Sacramento, CA — With ballots out for the September 14 recall attempt, NARAL Pro-Choice California is mobilizing thousands of voters across the state—by phone, text, email, and social media—to vote NO to unseating reproductive freedom champion Governor Gavin Newsom. This recall attempt is funded by major anti-choice donors, who have partnered with right-wing militia groups, QAnon conspiracy theorists, and Radical Right leaders. NARAL Pro-Choice California is also sounding the alarm on the field of anti-choice Republican candidates.

Larry Elder, the leading anti-choice Republican candidate, recently told KQED that Roe v. Wade was “one of the worst decisions the Supreme Court ever handed down” and confirmed his belief that employers should be able to engage in pregnancy discrimination. Assemblyman Kevin Kiley, another leading GOP candidate, has a long record of opposing reproductive freedom, including allowing employees to be fired for their personal reproductive health decisions—earning him a 100% rating from California Pro-Life Council and an endorsement from Californians for Life—and voting against job-protected paid family leave. John Cox, who opposes all abortion care with no exceptions, is also on the ballot, as is Kevin Faulconer and Caitlyn Jenner, who both backed Donald Trump despite his extremist policies. 

NARAL Pro-Choice California Director Shannon Olivieri Hovis released the following statement:

“Governor Newsom declared California a reproductive freedom state and has worked tirelessly to make California a more equitable place for every body to make important decisions about their health, lives, families, and futures. California families cannot risk losing Newsom’s leadership in a right-wing power grab, especially at a time when the legal right to abortion is under unprecedented attack. Our nearly 300,000 NARAL members in California are working hard to keep Gov. Newsom in office and defeat desperate challengers like Larry Elder, Kevin Kiley, and John Cox who are determined to impose their dangerous anti-choice agenda on our state.”

Under an anti-choice Republican governor, California could see new barriers to abortion coverage under Medi-Cal; cuts to access to abortion, contraception, sex education; and cuts to funding for crucial public health programs and services—which largely serve communities of color and those working to make ends meet. 

The anti-choice agenda of the Republican candidates for governor is markedly out of line with California voters. Polling has found that 84% of Californians support keeping abortion legal and accessible and 80% of voters cite reproductive freedom as a key factor in how they vote. Additionally, a recent poll of NARAL’s members in California indicates that 93% have committed to voting no on the recall. NARAL California’s nearly 300,000 members are working to mobilize voters across the state, holding weekly phone and text banks in support of Gov. Newsom. 

The recall comes as anti-choice lawmakers across the country are ramping up attacks on reproductive freedom. In the coming months, the U.S. Supreme Court is preparing to hear oral arguments in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization—a direct challenge to Roe v. Wade. At the same time, anti-choice state lawmakers have already introduced, advanced, or passed more than 330 state bills attacking abortion access in 2021. This year, over 90 restrictions on abortion access have been enacted at the state level, making it the worst year for abortion rights since Roe was decided.

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For over 50 years, NARAL Pro-Choice America and its network of state affiliates and chapters have fought to protect and advance reproductive freedom—including access to abortion, contraception, 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 7 in 10 Americans who believe every person should have the freedom to make the best decision for themselves about if, when, and how to raise a family.