Planned Parenthood wades into New Hampshire’s Executive Council election

After years of being stonewalled on state contracts by Republicans on the Executive Council, Planned Parenthood of Northern New England, via its affiliated PAC, is trying to boost a slate of Democratic council candidates more sympathetic to its cause.

The council, an elected body unique to New Hampshire that approves or rejects state contracts and vets gubernatorial nominees, is currently controlled by Republicans, 4-1. Four Democrats — Lisa Sheldon, of Portsmouth; Luz Bay, of Dover; Jim O’Connell, of Manchester; and Melanie Levesque, of Brookline — are running to unseat each of the four Republicans on the council. Karen Liot Hill, the one Democratic incumbent, is running for reelection against Republican nominee Tobin Menard.

Planned Parenthood’s affiliated PAC — the Planned Parenthood New Hampshire Action Fund — has endorsed each of those five Democrats in their respective races.

Throughout the past five years, the Executive Council has repeatedly rejected contracts with Planned Parenthood and other healthcare organizations to provide services like cancer screenings, STD treatment, and contraception. Republicans on the council were concerned the organizations also provided abortions and did not want to do business with them. They argued that providing state funds would help keep the lights on and pay other bills in buildings that provide abortions, even if the state funding wasn’t spent directly on abortions. The Department of Health and Human Services, which asked the council to approve the contracts, said at the time that it must provide affordable reproductive healthcare to low-income residents throughout the entire state and these were the only bids it received that covered every region of the state.

“This body holds so much power regarding our rights and access to healthcare,” Nicole Clegg,  CEO of Planned Parenthood of Northern New England, said, adding: “The New Hampshire Executive Council has been told time and time again that none of this funding goes to abortion care, and that has been reiterated by both the state’s attorney general and the Department of Health and Human Services. But still, the majority of the council has consistently chosen to put their own personal politics above public health.”

Cinde Warmington, then the lone Democrat on the Executive Council, was the only one to vote in favor of the contracts — which also had the support of then-Gov. Chris Sununu, a Republican — and often clashed with her colleagues on the issue. Warmington is now running for governor and was similarly endorsed by Planned Parenthood in her race.

While these contracts wouldn’t have provided funding for abortions, Planned Parenthood has advocated for abortion access in New Hampshire.

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Since 2021, abortion has been legal in New Hampshire up to 24 weeks of pregnancy. New Hampshire Republicans, including Gov. Kelly Ayotte, have repeatedly promised they wouldn’t further restrict abortion. However, some GOP lawmakers on the right flank of the party have tested the bounds of what that means with legislation that doesn’t outright ban the procedure but legislates on the periphery of the abortion landscape. 

Earlier this year, House lawmakers sought to impose criminal penalties on anyone who drives a minor to receive an abortion (House Bill 191) and to enshrine into law an employee’s right to conscientiously object to participate in abortions if they work at a healthcare facility that provides abortions (House Bill 232), among other measures. Planned Parenthood, and other reproductive rights groups, publicly opposed those two bills, characterizing them as anti-abortion and thinly veiled attempts to restrict access.

Warmington took aim at Ayotte, her election competitor, at last week’s event: “The truth is Kelly Ayotte won’t protect reproductive health care for Granite Staters.”

While an outright ban hasn’t crossed her desk in the nearly two years she’s been governor, Ayotte has used her most powerful weapon, the veto pen, against some of the legislation Planned Parenthood called anti-abortion. In July, she vetoed HB 232, the conscientious objection bill. HB 191 did not make it to her desk.

Asked how that squares with her claims, Warmington said: “Kelly Ayotte needs to be leading on this issue and making sure that everyone understands how important it is that we provide reproductive health care to everyone in our state. She fails to do that. She has failed to provide any leadership on this topic.” 

Warmington argued she should’ve joined federal lawsuits filed by other governors against attempts to restrict medication abortion or used an executive order to protect New Hampshire providers from out-of-state prosecution.

“Vetoing bad bills is the bare minimum that we should expect from a governor,” Liot Hill added.