WHAT THEY’RE WATCHING: Blake Masters Supports Arizona’s 1864 Abortion Ban, Would Work to Federalize It

For Immediate Release
Thursday, September 29, 2022
Contact: Hannah Goss, hgoss@azdem.org

WHAT THEY’RE WATCHING: Blake Masters Supports Arizona’s 1864 Abortion Ban, Would Work to Federalize It
PHOENIX — While Blake Masters hopes that Arizonans will forget his previous support for nationalizing Arizona’s newly-reinstated abortion ban, folks across the state are hearing all about how the GOP Senate nominee voiced his support for the 1864 law that outlaws abortion without exceptions for rape or incest and mandates jail time for providers.

Tuesday, to highlight the devastating implications of Masters’ plan to federalize the pre-statehood ban, former Republican Mayor of Scottsdale Sam Campana and local OB-GYN Dr. Paul Isaacson joined ADP Chair Raquel Terán for a press conference to underscore the irreparable harm Masters’ beliefs would cause Arizona women.

See below for a roundup of coverage highlighting Masters’ dangerous support for one of America’s most restrictive abortion bans:

CBS Phoenix: Protest Against Arizona Abortion Law

  • Just days following a Pima County judge’s decision to enforce the state’s abortion law, some state leaders are pushing back against making that measure national law. Arizona Republican nominee for US Senate Blake Masters said he would support nationalizing that ban.
  • It wasn’t just Democrats — we also heard from one Republican as well. She is a lifelong conservative, she says, but she felt compelled to be here after that Pima County judge reinstated an old law banning nearly all abortions in the state. “So it is important to me for people to see that smart, strong Republican women really do support access to abortion.”

NBC Phoenix: Dems Call Out Senate Candidate Masters

  • Local Democrats spoke out against the effort to enforce the Civil War-era law and specifically call out Republican Senate candidate Blake Masters.
  • “Today, Arizona women are now subject to the most extreme abortion ban in America a ban that prohibits abortion in cases of rape or incest and mandates jail time for doctors like me who are only trying to provide care for the women who need us,” [said Dr. Paul Isaacson.]
  • “Here’s the bottom line, we deserve a Senator who fights for us, not against us. A Senator who protects our rights, not one who strips them away,” [said ADP Chair Raquél Terán.]

CNN: One of the last women to get a legal abortion in Arizona tells her story

  • “Our stories do matter. We do matter. I feel that people like Blake Masters need to know that,” she says, citing the Republican candidate who is challenging US Sen. Mark Kelly, a Democrat.
  • After running in his primary as “100% pro-life,” Masters has been modifying his public stance online. He has not commented on the Pima County court decision.

###

Join our Campaign

Every donation helps get us closer to re-electing Joe Biden, holding the Senate, retaking the House, and flipping both chambers of our state legislature.
View the Final and Approved 2024 DNC Delegate Selection Plan