Is Abortion Access Important to You? Then Keep an Eye on the Pennsylvania Governor’s Race

Pennsylvania—home of the Liberty Bell, Hershey’s chocolate, and Taylor Swift’s Christmas-tree-farm childhood—is your classic, nail-biting swing state, but in the past few years, the numbers have gotten really wild. Trump won Pennsylvania in 2016 by 0.7 percent, only for Biden to grab it by just over 1 percent in 2020. We’re talking the difference between fewer than 50,000 votes, you know?

When it comes to unwanted pregnancies, Pennsylvania currently allows abortion through the 23rd week and later than that if the mother’s life is in danger. But here’s a little civics lesson for you: As of right now, the state has a Republican-led legislature, aka the politicians who draft, approve, or reject changes to Pennsylvania state laws. They have attempted to pass bills that would criminalize certain types of second-trimester abortions, jail the doctors who perform them, and move the deadline up to 20 weeks, but thankfully, the Democratic governor, Tom Wolf, has vetoed them all.

How aggro is this legislature? Governor Wolf literally sued the Republican-led general assembly for its efforts to amend the Pennsylvania State Constitution to restrict abortion. Even after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June, Governor Wolf—our pro-choice king—has continued advocating and upholding Pennsylvania’s right to an abortion. Unfortunately, after eight years in office, he’s reached the end of his final term.

Which brings us to the two candidates vying for the governor seat in next month’s midterm elections. Democrat Josh Shapiro, the state’s current attorney general, has advocated for the constitutional right to privacy—i.e., the right to do whatever the hell we want with our bodies, including ending an unwanted pregnancy with an abortion. Shapiro has promised to make like Governor Wolf and veto any restrictions that cross his desk.

Can’t say the same for his opponent, state senator and right-wing extremist Doug Mastriano, “one of the most extreme anti-abortion activists in the country,” says Lindsey Mauldin, director of coordinated programs for Planned Parenthood Pennsylvania PAC. The staunchly anti-choice Mastriano—who, um, attended the January 6 Capitol insurrection—introduced a so-called “heartbeat bill” in 2019, wants to eliminate exceptions for rape and incest, and has said he would jail women who get abortions. (Say it with me now…what the f*ck!) If Mastriano wins, he’d have the Pennsylvania legislature in his sights.

What first made you interested in politics?

Growing up, I watched my parents serve their community—my father as a pediatrician, my mother as an educator. I witnessed firsthand how they cared for our neighbors and friends, and I recognized at a young age the importance of standing up for others and knew that was how I wanted to spend my career.

What’s a moment from your career thus far that you’re really proud of?

I’ve been focused on reducing student debt from Pennsylvania families. As Pennsylvania’s attorney general, I took on the predatory lenders and returned $130 million to Pennsylvania students and families who got screwed and taken advantage of. College shouldn’t mean a lifetime of debt, and there should be more opportunities for people who don’t want to go college.

What experiences in your life have shaped your view on reproductive justice?

Wherever I go in Pennsylvania, I hear from people who are worried that their rights will be taken away. But one recent example stands out to me. I was in Lawrence County, Pennsylvania, which is a very conservative area, and an older woman literally grabbed me by the lapels of my jacket, pulled me into her face, and said, “Do not let us go back to what it was like before Roe.” This is a community where you wouldn’t expect to hear that, but I think it’s illustrative of the fact that I am hearing about this issue all across the board from everyone—because they know what’s at stake in this election and they know my opponent is wildly out of touch with where the vast majority of Pennsylvanians are.

What, if any, abortion law in your state needs to change?

Here in Pennsylvania, abortion is still legal, but we have a Republican legislature that routinely puts bills on the desk of the governor to ban abortion. My opponent has pledged to not only sign those bills into law but go further. He has said his number one priority is to ban all abortion, with no exceptions—not in the case of rape or incest or even to save the life of the woman. The next governor is going to either sign that extreme bill, like my opponent will, or veto it. I’ll veto it.

How have you felt about your party’s response to the overturning of Roe?

I have made clear that I will always support a woman’s right to choose, and my position has not changed over the past two decades. In fact, when I launched this campaign for governor, well before Dobbs, I talked about the importance of being a governor that defends the freedom of women to make decisions over their own bodies. Dobbs has taken the issue from a theoretical conversation to a very practical one because, of course, we have a legislature that is run by Republicans who have routinely passed bans on abortion. I will continue to stand up and defend freedom here in Pennsylvania.

What connection, if any, does abortion access have to broader freedoms in the U.S.?

This is an issue about fundamental freedom. It’s not freedom to tell women what they’re allowed to do with their bodies. This is an issue that cuts across party lines, geographic lines, and gender lines. For the first time in our nation’s recent history, a right has been taken away from people.

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Icon illustrations by John Francis.

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