Where do 2024 NC gubernatorial candidates Josh Stein, Mark Robinson stand on abortion?
About a year after the U.S. Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade in June 2022, North Carolina’s Republican-led legislature tightened abortion regulations from a 20-week ban to a 12-week ban under Senate Bill 20.
The Tar Heel State’s changes were a part of a national move toward abortion restrictions after Roe v. Wade gave the power to states on abortion access. Now 14 states have total abortion bans, with many of them being Southern states.
Although abortion itself will not appear on the ballot this November, it has become a top issue during the election cycle, especially in the gubernatorial race between Democrat Josh Stein and Republican Mark Robinson. Current Gov. Roy Cooper vetoed the General Assembly's 12-week abortion ban, but what will the next governor do if the legislature attempts to further tighten restrictions?
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Here’s where the candidates for governor stand on the issue of abortion.
Mark Robinson, Republican
Robinson, the current lieutenant governor, is anti-abortion.
His stance, backed by his Christian faith, was cemented after his then girlfriend, now wife, had an abortion before the pair got married saying they made “the wrong” decision in a 2022 video posted on X, formerly known as Twitter.
“It's because of this experience, and our spiritual journey, that we are so adamantly pro-life,” Robinson said sitting next to his wife Yolanda Hill Robinson.
Some of Robinson’s past comments about abortion have caught the attention of Democrats, and the media for their salacious nature. His opponent, Josh Stein, even released an ad with clips from Robinson talking about abortion.
“Abortion in this country is not about protecting the lives of mothers, it's about killing the child because you weren’t responsible enough to keep your skirt down,” Robinson said in Stein’s compilation ad.
Earlier in Robinson’s political career, he made more definitive comments, saying he supported a 6-week abortion ban, with exceptions for rape, incest and safety of the mother. During his election for lieutenant governor, he said there should be no compromise for abortions. Since then, he has muddied what his plans would be if elected, but in February, CBS 17 reported that Robinson still supports a further abortion ban.
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Josh Stein, Democrat
Stein, the current attorney general, supports abortion access and a women’s right to make the decision with her doctor, not the state government. He is endorsed by Planned Parenthood Votes! South Atlantic and has said, if elected, he would veto any attempts to further restrict abortion access.
“Deciding whether and when to have a baby is the most personal decision a woman can make,” Stein wrote on his campaign website. “It is a decision that a woman should make with her loved ones and her doctor. It should not be made by politicians.”
Although individual North Carolinians will not vote on abortion access in the general election, Stein has urged voters that whichever governor candidate is elected in November will have a great impact on future abortion-related policy.
“At a time when extremists are threatening to enact a total ban on abortion, it’s critical that we elect leadership that will protect and defend women’s rights here in North Carolina,” Stein wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter in March.
This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Election 2024 Where NC governor candidates stand on abortion