Centennial State News

Heidi Ganahl, the Republican nominee for governor of Colorado, believes that the issue of abortion in Colorado should be decided by voters, rather than by one person.

"I will meet the people of Colorado where they are on this very sensitive issue," Ganahl said. "I am personally pro-life with exception for the very horrible instances of rape, incest and the life and health of the mother and baby. I will meet the people of Colorado where they are on this important issue and many others. I can say with certainty they are NOT where the governor is, that late term abortions up until birth are OK. What he did was not OK. The people of Colorado should have a say, a vote, on this issue."

Incumbent Gov. Jared Polis signed the Reproductive Health Equity Act into law in April, cementing the legality of abortion in Colorado. The bill asserts that Colorado women have a right to undergo an abortion. The law prohibits state and local public entities from enacting any restrictions on abortions.

Polis issued a press release calling the Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade "alarming" and touted Colorado as an abortion haven.

"Because of my administration and Democratic leadership in the legislature, Coloradans don’t have to worry because our rights are still protected today despite the unfortunate reality that the U.S. Supreme Court just rolled those freedoms back for millions of Americans in other states," Polis said. "In Colorado, we will continue to choose freedom and we stand against government control over our bodies. State leadership matters now more than ever and in Colorado we will not retreat to an archaic era where the powerful few controlled the freedoms over our bodies and health decisions."

A May report from Pew Research Center found that only 19% of respondents believed that abortion should be legal in all cases with no exceptions. Thirty-six percent of respondents felt that abortion should be legal in most cases, and 27% responded that it should be illegal in most cases. Eight percent of respondents felt that it should be illegal in all cases with no exceptions, while 2% believed it should be illegal in all cases, but with some exceptions.

The Fuller Project, which compiled a list of state laws on abortion in the wake of Roe v. Wade, found that Colorado is one of just six states in the country with no limitations on abortion whatsoever. States including California and New York have limits on abortions after 24 weeks into pregnancy.

Ganahl and Polis will face off in November's general election, according to Ballotpedia.