Virginia Dems to Sears: Reproductive rights should not be ‘political’

Virginia Democrats are pushing back on recent comments from Lieutenant Governor Winsome Earle-Sears saying the focus on defending the right to contraception is “about pushing a political agenda.”

As Lieutenant Governor Winsome Earle-Sears continues to downplay concerns about the state of reproductive rights in Virginia, state Democrats are not letting her – or voters – forget about her vote against a bill related to contraception. 

Earlier this year, during Virginia’s legislative session, Earle-Sears, who is the Republican nominee for governor this fall, cast a tie-breaking vote against a bill that would guarantee the right to access and use contraception in Virginia. 

It was the second year in a row that Democratic state Sen. Ghazala Hashmi and state Del. Cia Price introduced the bill amid concerns that Republicans would seek to roll back reproductive rights even further in the wake of the US Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade. 

“These medications are so essential for millions of individuals across the country and here in Virginia,” Hashmi said on a call with reporters Wednesday. “There is absolutely no room for politicians to be a part of this conversation between a patient and her medical provider.”

The bill ultimately made it to the desk of Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin, who vetoed it for the second year in a row over concerns that health care providers would not be able to deny providing contraception, which many women use for serious health care reasons, on religious grounds. 

Ever since, Democrats have blasted what they see as Earle-Sears’ extreme position on reproductive rights and demanded she answer for her opposition to the contraception bill. 

Sarah Goodman, an organizer with the Democratic-aligned Red Wine & Blue, said on Wednesday’s call that due to a traumatic experience when she had her second child, doctors say she would face serious health risks were she to have another pregnancy.

“I’m still relying on birth control, not just to prevent an unwanted pregnancy that could be disastrous, but also to help with the myriad of other symptoms that are common in women my age,” Goodman said. “I fail to understand how something that is so obviously a personal medical health care issue is being treated by Republicans as a partisan issue.”

Earle-Sears told The Dogwood in April that she agreed that people should have access to contraception, but did not respond when asked about her vote against the contraception bill. Earle-Sears did not respond to a request for comment for this story.

@vadogwoodnews Republican candidate for governor, Winsome Earle-Sears, says one thing on contraception and does another 🤔 The math ain’t mathin’! #virginianews ♬ original sound – The Dogwood

On Tuesday, Radio IQ reporter Brad Kutner published a statement from Earle-Sears saying that, “Virginians already have broad access, and this legislation is more about pushing a political agenda than protecting women’s health.”

Democratic state Del. Candi Mundon King pushed back on Earle-Sears’ statement on Wednesday’s call with reporters. King said the stakes are much higher for people who take contraception medications to treat health care conditions like endometriosis and painful fibroids.

“This is not a political agenda,” King said.