Pritzker says fundamental rights will be key voter motivator in 2024
Pritzker says fundamental rights will be key voter motivator in 2024
Illinois Governor JB Pritzker asserts that immigration will remain a significant topic through the presidential election season, but he highlights the fight for fundamental rights as the primary driver for the majority of voters heading to the polls.
CHICAGO - Illinois Governor JB Pritzker asserts that immigration will remain a significant topic through the presidential election season, but he highlights the fight for fundamental rights as the primary driver for the majority of voters heading to the polls.
Monday marked the 51st anniversary of the Supreme Court's "Roe v. Wade" decision, establishing a constitutional right to abortion. However, this decision was overturned almost two years ago, resulting in a wave of new abortion restrictions nationwide. Illinois remains a safe haven for abortion rights, and the State Department of Health reports a significant increase in out-of-state resident abortions since 2022.
Governor Pritzker anticipates that reproductive rights will be a crucial factor influencing voters this November.
"That's just one of many freedoms they are going after. They want to take away your right to choose which books to read in the library. They want to take away your right to have a school that will teach African American history, or the history of Native Americans, or the history of LGBTQ Americans. They want to end all of that and take us back to the 1950s or before. So I think people should take note that abortion isn't the only thing on the ballot in the presidential election coming up. It' also across the board, these fundamental freedoms," he said.
Recognizing the political divide, President Joe Biden launched his abortion rights campaign with new initiatives aimed at strengthening access to contraception and abortion medications. On Monday, Biden convened his Reproductive Rights Task Force in DC, while Vice President Kamala Harris hosted an event in Wisconsin.
This event coincided with a public hearing in Madison on a bill proposing a statewide referendum on a 14-week abortion ban.
"In America, freedom is not to be given. It is not to be bestowed. It is ours by right. By rights. And that includes the freedom to make decisions about one's own body, not the government telling you what to do," said Harris.