Pennsylvania Congressman Scott Perry's race against Democrat Janelle Stelson got underway in earnest this week, after the latter earned her party's nomination to represent the 10th Congressional District.
FOX43 spoke with both candidates this week on their positions on some of the biggest topics heading into November, including the economy, abortion, border security and American support for Israel and Ukraine.
Nearly two years since Roe v. Wade was overturned by the Supreme Court, the intensity of the debate over abortion and women’s rights has only grown.
Recent decisions by the Arizona Supreme Court, which reinstated a pre-Civil War era total abortion ban, along with the Alabama Supreme Court's decision to ban in vitro fertilization, has sparked debate over the lengths of laws protecting unborn fetuses as well as the role of the federal government on regulating abortion.
Former president Donald Trump came out earlier this month against a federal abortion ban, and said the issue should be left up to the states.
Rep. Perry told FOX43 that he agrees with the position, and says that state control of abortion rights was the intent of the Dobbs v Jackson Women’s Health Supreme Court decision which overturned Roe v Wade.
“I think it's the appropriate one,” Perry said on Trump’s position. “Let's honor the court's decision, and then have the states figure that out so that we have those decisions being made locally where they should be.”
Stelson, a former WGAL News anchor, says that Perry has attempted to ban abortion nationwide and put IVF at risk through his co-sponsorship of the Life at Conception Act last year.
The Act, if passed, would “implement equal protection under the 14th article of amendment to the Constitution for the right to life of each born and preborn human person,” giving unborn fetuses equal protection under the law pursuant to the 14th Amendment.
“That would absolutely ban abortion nationwide with no exceptions: rape, incest, the health of the mother, the life of a mother,” Stelson said. “He wants a total ban on abortions, and he wants the same on IVF. And I could not be more opposite.”
The Perry campaign is pushing back on Stelson’s claims, reiterating the six-term incumbent’s stated position on the issue.
“Congressman Perry has made clear - time and again - that he supports access to IVF treatments because it provides the opportunity for the blessing of children to loving families who have difficulty conceiving,” said a campaign spokesperson in a statement. “Ms. Stelson’s attempt to divert the conversation for her political gain with her misleading, [nonfactual], and desperate political attacks on an issue so personal to so many south-central Pennsylvania families is just plain sad.”
Perry has repeatedly stated his support for IVF, and says that he maintains his personal pro-life stance while continuing to leave the issue to the states.
“I still believe in the sanctity of life,” Perry said. “I also make exceptions for rape, incest and the life of the mother. I think when it comes to taxpayer dollars at the federal level, taxpayers shouldn't be forced to violate their strongly held beliefs and pay for those things.”
The last day to register to vote before the November General Election is October 21.