Reproductive Freedom for All, one of the largest reproductive rights nonprofits nationwide, announced Monday a six-figure investment in a Michigan canvassing effort in advance of the November midterm elections.
The investment is part of the organization’s “My Body. My Ballot.”campaign— $23.5 million going to the group’s “largest-ever midterm electoral program and will focus on persuading and mobilizing voters – including independents, soft Republicans, and split-ticket voters – whose support for abortion access puts them at odds with Trump and his endorsed candidates.”
Michigan’s 7th Congressional District, currently represented by Republican U.S. Rep. Tom Barrett of Charlotte, was listed as one of the campaign’s top-tier targets.
“Even with the protections we fought hard to pass here in Michigan, we know our reproductive freedom is not safe from extreme anti-abortion Republicans. We still feel the nationwide attacks on funding and access. Reproductive freedom will be a defining issue in November, and Michigan voters deserve to know exactly where the candidates stand,” Reproductive Freedom for All Director of Michigan Campaigns Shanay Watson-Whittaker said in a press release.
The group specifically named Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, the frontrunner for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination in the Aug. 4 primary, as well as Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist, and Washtenaw County Prosecutor Eli Savit, who are the Democratic nominees for Secretary of State and Attorney General, respectively, as “champions for reproductive freedom.” The press release did not name any candidates in highly contested Democratic primaries — including for the 7th Congressional District and the U.S. Senate.
The group also announced on Monday that its president and CEO, Mini Timmaraju, will travel to Michigan in August to join candidates, organizers and advocates.
The press release also specifically targeted Barrett and fellow Republican U.S. Rep. John James of Shelby Township, who is running for governor with the endorsement of President Donald Trump in a primary against businessman Perry Johnson, for their support of “devastating Medicaid cuts that threaten reproductive, preventive, and essential health care, while standing with a movement determined to push abortion care further out of reach,” Watson-Whittaker continued.
The press release cited an internalstudybased on a focus group and survey of voters who did not vote for Kamala Harris but who voted “Yes” on abortion referendums in Arizona, Michigan, or Nevada. It found that, among battleground voters, 43% considered a politician that supports a national abortion ban to be a dealbreaker — just a slightly lower percentage than a politician who supports raising taxes on middle class families or cutting Medicaid.
“Most battleground voters are not hearing about the issue of abortion, so while many express concerns about Republican policies that restrict access to abortion, they also believe these policies are unlikely to happen,” a summary of the survey results said.
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