Democratic gubernatorial candidate Deidre DeJear said she would fight for abortion access in Iowa at a stop in Sioux City on Tuesday.
DeJear called for a protection of abortion access as she spoke to western Iowa residents. She said the recent Supreme Court ruling to reverse the constitutional right to abortion has added another priority to her campaign.
“We know what just happened a few days ago,” she said in a speech at the Siouxland Progressive Women luncheon. “That decision compromises the integrity of a woman's right. I won't even say right to choose, a right to be.”
Abortion remains legal in Iowa, but recent rulings on the federal and state level open the state up to abortion restrictions. DeJear said those rulings are a loss for women in the state. She said she doesn’t want to see the rolling back of reproductive rights take place in Iowa.
“The Supreme Court is putting that decision in the hands of the state,” DeJear said. “And so the states have to be ready to ensure that each and every person that lives in this state has that freedom to life, liberty, and happiness.”
Her comments came before Gov. Kim Reynolds asked state courts on Tuesday to reinstate a law that would ban abortions once fetal heartbeat activity can be detected, or around six weeks into a pregnancy. Last week, Reynolds celebrated the Supreme Court's decision calling it one of the court's "greatest moments."
DeJear criticized Reynolds for applauding the Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe v. Wade. Dejear said she doesn’t believe the incumbent governor isn’t doing enough to provide social support to people throughout their lives.
“We have to make sure that we're focusing on people's experiences in this life, at least, from cradle to grave, and this current leadership is circumventing her duty to do that,” DeJear said.
At her stop, DeJear also talked with Sioux City residents about education, mental health and voting rights. Preserving reproductive rights is just another freedom that she will fight for on her campaign trail, she said.
IPR's Natalie Krebs contributed reporting.
