Rep. Bruce White to voters: Don't let my anti-abortion record stop you from voting for me
For Immediate Release: May 30, 2024
Primary election for Waterville seat in Maine Legislature an opportunity for voters to make their voices heard as 2nd anniversary of Dobbs decision weeks away
(Portland, MAINE) – Anti-abortion Democrat Rep. Bruce White doesn't believe his legislative career of voting against Mainers’ access to abortion and related care should sway voters from casting ballots granting him another term in office.
According to a report in the Kennebec Journal and Morning Sentinel, White told the news outlet via email that he didn’t have time for an interview and that he “doesn’t think his votes on abortion disqualify him from being his party’s candidate once again.”
White, a three-term incumbent with a career voting score of 18.5% on reproductive rights policy from Planned Parenthood Maine Action Fund, reportedly deflected a direct question about his stance on abortion from the Maine Morning Star and lamented that he has a primary challenger at all in responses to questions from the Kennebec Journal and Morning Sentinel, Maine Morning Star and Bangor Daily News.
Waterville advocate and mother Cassie Julia, who has pledged to fight for reproductive liberties in Maine, launched her campaign after her daughter and her daughter’s friends were upset about White’s anti-abortion voting record in the legislature. Planned Parenthood Maine Action Fund PAC endorsed Julia in April, marking the first time the organization has endorsed in a state legislative primary race.
The stark contrast in candidate values regarding reproductive rights mirrors electoral fights across the country, and the June 11 primary comes just weeks before the two-year anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court ruling that revoked federal protections for abortion. The devastating consequences of that ruling continue to show why politicians don’t belong in exam rooms.
The U.S. Supreme Court is expected to rule in June on politically-motivated cases that threaten the availability of FDA-approved medication abortion and emergency medical care respectively.
A majority of Mainers favor expanded access to abortion, and majorities of Americans (including Republicans) say it should be easier to access reproductive health care including birth control pills, in-vitro fertilization and abortion.
In Maine, Rep. Bruce White voted as recently as April 2024 to deny Mainers the opportunity to weigh in on a proposed constitutional amendment protecting reproductive autonomy at the state level. In 2023, White voted against decriminalizing abortion in Maine, against ensuring no Mainer has to leave the state for abortion care throughout pregnancy, against protecting providers of this care, and against making abortion care more affordable for people with insurance.
Since taking office in 2019, White has cast votes in favor of policies championed by anti-abortion extremists, voting with Maine Republicans multiple times to take away MaineCare coverage of abortion, to require burial or cremation of fetal tissue following miscarriage or abortion, to mandate waiting periods and unnecessary medical procedures for people seeking abortions, and against funding for critical family planning services throughout the state.
Statement from Lisa Margulies, Vice President of Public Affairs, Planned Parenthood Maine Action Fund PAC:
“The people of Waterville have a choice in this primary election. They can vote for someone with a track record of ignoring the will of his constituents and working to deny them basic reproductive rights or they can vote for someone who has pledged to fight to protect and expand access to reproductive health care and freedom.
The simple reality is that 1 in 4 women will have an abortion at some point in the lifetime, and they are our mothers, daughters and spouses. They are our friends, neighbors and coworkers. They sit next to us at the local high school football game, stand next to us in line at the grocery store and join us in our church pews. Abortion is an issue that touches everyone, and it’s time politicians understand that reality.
With federal protections for abortion gone, the people we choose to represent us in Augusta will decide the fate of reproductive health care and freedoms in Maine.
Bruce White has proven he is not an ally to Mainers who value reproductive liberties, and Waterville voters have every right to weigh White’s anti-reproductive rights record against their own values as they cast ballots in this primary. Democracy works best when constituents hold their elected leaders accountable.
This election is about who Waterville voters want making decisions about their reproductive rights: someone who will vote against our reproductive liberties or someone who has promised to fight for them.”
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The Planned Parenthood Maine Action Fund Political Action Committee promotes and preserves a health care landscape and a political climate favorable to women’s health by working to identify and elect supportive candidates seeking executive and legislative offices.
The PPMEAF PAC is operated by the Planned Parenthood Maine Action Fund, an independent, nonpartisan, not-for-profit membership organization formed as the advocacy and political arm of Planned Parenthood of Northern New England in Maine. The Action Fund engages in educational and electoral activity, including voter education, grassroots organizing, and legislative advocacy.
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Paid for by Planned Parenthood Maine Action Fund PAC
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The top funder of the Planned Parenthood Maine Action Fund PAC is John and Linda Coleman.
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