Abortion Rights Discussed in Texas, Pa. Gubernatorial Debates

February 2, 2010 — Candidates in gubernatorial races in Texas and Pennsylvania discussed their views on abortion rights and other issues during primary debates last week. Summaries appear below.

~ Pennsylvania: Democratic candidates on Sunday discussed abortion rights during the first debate leading up to the May 18 primary for governor, the Philadelphia Inquirer reports. Candidates Joe Hoeffel, a former member of Congress and current Montgomery County, Pa., commissioner, and Chris Doherty, a three-term mayor of Scranton, both said they fully support abortion rights and would advocate against any effort to restrict abortion in the state if Roe v. Wade were overturned. Jack Wagner, Pennsylvania's auditor general, said he favored the abortion restrictions included in the state's Abortion Control Act, which has been in effect since the mid-1990s. Allegheny County, Pa., executive Dan Onorato said he would seek to retain current law. Onorato has described himself as personally against abortion. According to the Inquirer, Onorato and Wagner are the early poll leaders among Democratic candidates (Infield, Philadelphia Inquirer, 2/1).

~ Texas: During a Republican primary debate on Friday, U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas) reiterated her support for some abortion restrictions while acknowledging that she opposes overturning Roe, the AP/Austin American Statesman reports. Hutchison said during the debate -- which included candidates Gov. Rick Perry and political activist Debra Medina -- that she supports parental notification for minors and bans on abortion later in pregnancy. However, she said she is "very concerned about what would happen" if Roe was overturned (Root, AP/Austin American Statesman, 1/30). In a previous debate, Perry, who opposes abortion rights, noted that Hutchison had been praised by an abortion-rights group. Friday marked the final debate before the March 2 Republican primary (AP/Houston Chronicle, 1/30).