Politics
Our political journalists are based in the Maine State House and have deep source networks across the partisan spectrum in communities all over the state. Their coverage aims to cut through major debates and probe how officials make decisions. Read more Politics coverage here.
The Planned Parenthood Maine Action PAC on Wednesday announced its endorsement of Democrat Hannah Pingree for governor.
Planned Parenthood Maine Action Fund President Nicole Clegg said delays in abortion care services caused by the Dobbs decision have had fatal consequences across the country.
“And this is why Maine cannot take these protections for granted. The next governor will help decide whether we continue our long-standing tradition of respecting the rights of our families, friends, and neighbors to make personal, private decisions without political interference,” Clegg said.
Clegg said Pingree has always stood with Planned Parenthood and believes she will continue that advocacy from the governor’s office.
Clegg did not share how much financial support her organization will offer Pingree’s campaign as she faces Republican Bobby Charles and independent Rick Bennett in the fall.
Accepting the endorsement in Portland, Pingree said she relied on Planned Parenthood throughout her 20s for her primary care and volunteered with the organization before that.
“I’ve witnessed the power of the care. I have lived it. I saw people who had nowhere else to go walk in and get treated like they mattered. I saw patients access critical preventative care screenings that literally saved their lives, and that’s why this fight is personal to me. It always has been, and right now it could not be more urgent,” Pingree said.
Pingree said she will work to enshrine reproductive freedom into the state constitution and ensure health care clinics like Planned Parenthood remain funded even as federal funding is rescinded.
This story appears through a media partnership with Maine Public.