Democrat Ad Shows Police Arresting Woman For Trying to Get An Out-of-State Abortion

California Gov. Gavin Newsom made waves when he shared a controversial political ad which shows a young woman being arrested by a police officer for fleeing the state to obtain an abortion.

The ad was paid for by Campaign for Democracy, a Democrat political action committee (PAC), and reinforces abortion as a pivotal issue that will shape the outcome of numerous races in this year’s election.

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“Trump Republicans want to criminalize young Alabama women who travel for reproductive care,” a voiceover on the ad says. Moments later, a police officer who has pulled the young woman’s car over asks her to step out of the vehicle and take a pregnancy test.

“Stop them,” the voiceover ominously warns viewers, “by taking action at RightToTravel.org.”

The fallout from the U.S. Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade in 2022 has been a quagmire for Republicans with GOP candidates underperforming in federal, judicial, statewide, and local elections across the U.S.

Abortion is now the top issue for the 2024 campaign, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker told the New York Times, as the issue has emerged as one of Republicans’ biggest election liabilities in decades.

Alabama has come under recent scrutiny after its Supreme Court ruled in February that frozen embryos created through in vitro fertilization (IVF) should be considered children. It is also a state that has some of the strictest bans on the procedure, as Newsom explained in his statement, referencing the lack of exceptions for rape or incest.

The overturning of Roe v. Wade made the issue of abortion a states-rights issue. Numerous states had trigger laws that automatically kicked in, rendering abortion illegal as soon as the decision was handed down.

Other states began passing legislation to prohibit abortion with exceptions varying per state. Other states have floated measures to criminalize travel, in some cases, to other states to obtain abortions.

“Republicans are not stopping at overturning Roe vs. Wade. Now they want to lock women and girls down completely, taking away their constitutional right to travel,” Campaign for Democracy says on its webpage.

“Three states — Tennessee, Oklahoma, and Alabama — are considering bills that ban minors from traveling out of state to get an abortion without parental consent — no matter if it's a case of incest or if there is abuse in the family,” the statement reads.

“These are states that basically want to imprison women and young girls,” the organization continues. “It's a backdoor nationwide abortion ban, denying women the opportunity to go to a freedom state. Taking away the right to travel that’s guaranteed by the 4th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.”