Illinois Democrats, abortion rights advocates say Illinois leading the effort nationally to protect access

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WCIA) – Many issues are on the top of mind for voters heading into this election cycle like the economy, and Illinois Democrats say another key issue ties into it: abortion rights.

“For women to be able to work, for women to be able to take care of our children, for us to be able to put food on the table, reproductive rights and the ability to decide what’s best for our bodies is an economic issue,” Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton, said speaking to the Illinois delegation at a breakfast event at the Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Chicago Tuesday.

When the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022, they left it up to individual states to make decisions about access to care.

“Even under Roe, states were stripping away access in the south and midwest,” Megan Jeyifo, the executive director of the Chicago Abortion Fund, said during that same event. “People were flooding into Illinois even then, and Illinois was taking action.”

Since the end of Roe v. Wade, Illinois is often referred to as a safe haven, surrounded by state’s that have put restrictions or bans in place.

Illinois put more laws on the books aimed at further safeguarding those rights, including protections for out of state patients and providers , and more recently, for pregnant women who need emergency medical care . Illinois Democrats think other states, even the entire country, can take a page out of the state’s playbook.

“We’ve already shown the blueprint right here in Illinois,” Stratton said. “Is there more? We hope to consider more, but I think we’re doing exactly what we should be, and that’s leading the nation around reproductive justice and freedom.”

With the DNC elevating Illinois to the national stage, abortion advocates say the debate around abortion access has too.

“We want more states and the nation to use what Illinois has done as a model to expand access the way leaders in our state have, by listening to people on the ground, by listening to people who have had abortions, by listening to people who are most impacted by abortion bans, and giving us the tools we need to do our work,” Jeyifo said.

Speaking to the Illinois delegation, Illinois State Treasurer Michael Frerichs shared his families’ experience with abortion access. When his previous wife was pregnant, Frerichs said the doctors told them their unborn child was growing without a brain.

Frerichs said doctors recommended ending the pregnancy but he says hospitals in the Champaign-Urbana area weren’t able to perform abortions, leading them to Planned Parenthood. He used the story to contrast the difference between the two political parties.

“My wife knew her child, our child, could not survive outside the womb, but they would force her to carry to term for nine months, deals with all the risks of pregnancy, dealing with the pain of knowing I’m going through all of this and it will be to bear a stillborn child or one that dies soon afterwards, that is cruel and that’s what the Republicans are offering,” Frerichs said.

Democrats expect abortion to be a key issue on the ballot this year. While Republicans have shied away from calling for a national abortion ban, states like Missouri where there are restrictions in place are giving voters the chance to decide if abortion rights should be enshrined in their states’ constitutions.

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