¶ Overview
Kelly Ayotte backed New Hampshire’s 24-week abortion law, argued that New Hampshire did not have an abortion ban, and framed the state’s current abortion law as aligned with other states.
- As a U.S. senator, Kelly Ayotte co-sponsored and voted for federal legislation to ban abortion after 20 weeks of gestation, the “Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act.” Ayotte also voted against allowing military health insurance to cover abortion in cases of rape or incest. She repeatedly voted to defund Planned Parenthood, opposed amendments to restore Planned Parenthood funding, and later defended those votes.
- Additionally, Ayotte voted against protecting contraception coverage under the Affordable Care Act. She also voted against guaranteeing contraception coverage for women with health insurance plans with religious objections to contraception coverage. Kelly Ayotte defended “conscience clause” policies allowing employers to refuse reproductive health services.
- As New Hampshire attorney general, Ayotte defended a parental notification abortion law at the U.S. Supreme Court that did not include an explicit health emergency exception for pregnant minors.
- Ayotte received support from national anti-abortion organizations, including National Right to Life and Susan B. Anthony List.
¶ Kelly Ayotte Repeatedly Voted Against Reproductive Rights And Supported Anti-Abortion Legislation
¶ Kelly Ayotte Supported New Hampshire’s 24-Week Abortion Law
¶ Kelly Ayotte Supported New Hampshire’s 24-Week Abortion Ban
2023: Kelly Ayotte Supported New Hampshire’s 24-Week Ban And Said She Would Not Renew Funding To Planned Parenthood Because They Provided Abortions. According to New Hampshire Bulletin, “Kelly Ayotte said she would stand by the 24-week ban signed by Sununu. ‘I support the current law, which like the majority of the states in this country addresses abortion during the last three months of pregnancy, and I would not change it,’ she said. When it comes to funding reproductive health care centers, Kelly Ayotte said she supports funding women’s preventative health care but would not renew funding to Planned Parenthood because it is ‘the largest provider of abortions in the country and also it’s really somewhat of a political organization.’ Instead, she would devote state resources to community health centers and ‘look at each contract’ when it came to the other reproductive health providers.” [New Hampshire Bulletin, 9/19/23]
¶ Kelly Ayotte Claimed There Was No Abortion Ban In New Hampshire
2023: Kelly Ayotte Said There Was No Abortion Ban In New Hampshire, Said She Would Oppose Further Abortion Restrictions, And Claimed New Hampshire’s Abortion Law Aligned With Other States. According to The New Hampshire Union Leader, “Kelly Ayotte says no, maintaining that she would oppose any further restrictions. ‘They love to spread misleading falsehoods; there is no abortion ban in New Hampshire,’ Kelly Ayotte said. ‘Our current law aligns us with the majority of states restricting late-term abortions.’ […] John Corbett, Kelly Ayotte’s campaign manager, said voters will see through false attacks. ‘Most people in New Hampshire agree with our current law, and Kelly has stated repeatedly she will not change it. Anything to the contrary is a lie,’ Corbett said.” [New Hampshire Union Leader, 11/11/23]
2023: Kelly Ayotte Said “There Is No Abortion Ban In New Hampshire.” According to NH Journal, “Republican candidate for governor Kelly Ayotte turned the tables on Democrats over the abortion issue Tuesday, declaring their claims of a Granite State abortion ban ‘just not true’ and challenging the fundamental premise of their attacks on the GOP. […] Asked about the attacks by radio host Jack Heath Tuesday, Kelly Ayotte said that on the abortion issue in New Hampshire, ‘Democrats love to spread falsehoods.’ ‘There is no abortion ban in New Hampshire. They’ve put that forward, and it’s just not true. And it’s actually dangerous for women’s health. Our current law actually aligns us with a majority of the states in addressing late-term abortion,’ Kelly Ayotte said.” [NH Journal, 7/25/23]
¶ Kelly Ayotte Voted For A 20-Week Federal Abortion Bill
¶ September 2015: Kelly Ayotte Effectively Voted For A 20-Week Abortion Ban After Previously Co-Sponsoring The “Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act”
September 2015: Kelly Ayotte Effectively Voted For A Bill That Would Prohibit Abortions After 20-Weeks Of Gestation. In September 2015, Kelly Ayotte effectively voted for a bill that would prohibit abortions after 20 weeks of gestation and would impose criminal penalties on doctors that violated the ban. According to Congressional Quarterly, the bill would, “prohibit abortions in cases where the probable age of the fetus is 20 weeks or later, except in cases of rape, incest against a minor or when the life of the pregnant woman is in danger. Specifically, it would provide an exemption for pregnancies that are the result of rape against adult women if the woman obtained counseling or medical treatment for the rape at least 48 hours before the abortion. Pregnancies resulting from rape or incest against a minor would also be exempt from the ban if the rape or incest had been reported before the abortion to law enforcement or another government agency authorized to act on reports of child abuse. The measure would impose criminal penalties on doctors who violate the ban. The measure also would require health care practitioners to give the same level of care to an infant born alive during a failed abortion as they would give to an infant born at the same gestational age through natural birth.” The vote was on cloture and the Senate rejected the bill 54 to 42. The House had earlier passed the bill. [Senate Vote 268, 9/22/15; Congressional Quarterly, 9/22/15; Congressional Actions, H.R. 36]
¶ 2014: Kelly Ayotte Expressed Her Support For A 20-Week Abortion Ban Bill
2014: Kelly Ayotte Signed A Letter Urging A Vote On The “Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act,” A Bill That Would Ban Abortions After 20 Weeks. According to the National Right To Life Newsletter, “Thirty-three Senators have signed a letter urging Democratic Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV.) to bring up legislation sponsored by South Carolina Senator Sen. Lindsey Graham. (See nrlc.cc/1mOZCmb and nrlc.cc/1mPd7Co and the story on page one.) ‘It is time that Congress acts to bring the United States out of the fringe when it comes to late term abortions,’ New Hampshire Republican Sen. Kelly Ayotte, who circulated the Dear Colleague letter, said in a statement at the time. ‘I urge Majority Leader Harry Reid to allow a vote on the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act, which would bring us closer to international norms and the views of the American people.’” [National Right To Life, 5/1/14]
POLITICO: Kelly Ayotte Helped Lead Fight To Bring A 20-Week Abortion Ban To The Floor In 2014. According to POLITICO, “‘Late-term abortions are obviously something that the American people don’t agree with. So I am looking at the bill and it’s up to the leader whether he brings it to the floor. But I’ve previously been against late-term abortions,’ said Sen. Kelly Ayotte (R-N.H.), who in 2014 worked with Graham to pressure then-Majority Leader Harry Reid in putting the bill up for a vote, citing polls that show support for a 20-week abortion ban.” [POLITICO, 6/10/15]
¶ 2013: Kelly Ayotte Co-Sponsored A 20-Week Abortion Ban Bill
2013: Kelly Ayotte Was An Original Co-Sponsor Of The Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act In The 113th Congress. [Congressional Record, 11/07/13]
Politico: Kelly Ayotte Helped Lead Fight To Bring A 20-Week Abortion Ban To The Floor In 2014. According to Politico, “‘Late-term abortions are obviously something that the American people don’t agree with. So I am looking at the bill and it’s up to the leader whether he brings it to the floor. But I’ve previously been against late-term abortions,’ said Sen. Kelly Ayotte (R-N.H.), who in 2014 worked with Graham to pressure then-Majority Leader Harry Reid in putting the bill up for a vote, citing polls that show support for a 20-week abortion ban.” [Politico, 6/10/15]
¶ Kelly Ayotte Voted Against A Proposal To Allow Military Health Insurance To Cover Abortion In Cases Of Rape Or Incest
May 2012: Kelly Ayotte Voted Against Allowing Military Health Insurance To Cover Abortion, If The Pregnancy Was The Result Of Rape Or Incest. In May 2012, Kelly Ayotte voted against an amendment, sponsored by Sen. Shaheen that would have, according to Congressional Quarterly, brought “the Defense Department in line with federal policies by allowing military health insurance to cover abortion services for women in uniform who are the victims of rape or incest.” The underlying legislation was an FY 2013 defense authorization. The vote was on the amendment. The Senate Armed Services committee adopted the amendment by a vote of 16 to 10. The full committee later adopted the legislation. The full Senate later adopted the bill, but it was never signed into law. A related bill, HR 4310, which included the policy, was signed into law by President Obama. [Congressional Quarterly, 5/24/12; Congress.gov – S. Rept. 112-173, S. 3254; Congressional Actions, S. 3254; Congressional Actions, H.R. 4310]
¶ Kelly Ayotte Repeatedly Voted To Defund Planned Parenthood
Kelly Ayotte Voted To Defund Planned Parenthood At Least Four Times In Her Senate Career
2016: Kelly Ayotte Voted To Defund Planned Parenthood Four Times And Voted Against Amendments To Restore Funding. According to a Planned Parenthood Press Release, “Kelly Ayotte has voted four times to ‘defund’ Planned Parenthood and voted against two separate amendments which would have restored funding for Planned Parenthood back into the underlying bill. She has even voted against equal pay legislation. This Senator has spent years calling for an end to safe, legal abortion and for Roe v. Wade to be overturned, and even went so far as to circulate a letter urging support for a bill to ban abortion after 20 weeks that included extreme provisions for rape survivors.” [Press Release – Planned Parenthood, 5/4/16]
2015: Kelly Ayotte Declined To Say Whether She Would Support A House Budget Package That Would Defund Planned Parenthood. According to The Hill, “A politically charged budget package moving in the House this week is creating a headache for Senate Republicans. The package, which under budget reconciliation rules cannot be filibustered, will block money for Planned Parenthood and gut ObamaCare. The problem: It’s unclear whether Senate Republicans can gather the 51 votes needed to approve it. Three Senate Republicans are on record as opposing an end to federal funding for Planned Parenthood. […] Murkowski, Collins and Sen. Kelly Ayotte (N.H.) in September all voted against proceeding to a short-term government funding measure that would have cut off Planned Parenthood, further muddying the issue. […] Kelly Ayotte, Collins, Kirk and Murkowski declined to say Tuesday whether they would vote for the House package. […] ‘I have to look at it,’ said Kelly Ayotte, who on Monday learned Democrats had recruited Gov. Maggie Hassan to challenge her next year. The Kelly Ayotte-Hassan race is expected to be one of the most hotly contested Senate races in the cycle.” [The Hill, 10/7/15]
April 2011: Kelly Ayotte Voted To Defund Planned Parenthood. In April 2011, Kelly Ayotte voted for prohibiting any funds appropriated in the recently-passed bill funding the government through the end of fiscal year 2011 from being made available to Planned Parenthood or any of its affiliates. The vote was on a continuing resolution that, according to the Congressional Quarterly, would “direct the House clerk to make a correction in the enrollment of a bill (HR 1473) to provide $1.055 trillion in discretionary funding for fiscal 2011, and insert a section that would bar the use of funds made available in the bill to the Planned Parenthood Federation of America Inc. or its affiliates.” That change would have been made prior to sending H.R. 1473 – which had already passed both the House and Senate – to the president. The Senate rejected the concurrent resolution by vote of 42 to 58. [Senate Vote 60, 4/14/11; Congressional Quarterly, 4/14/11]
¶ Kelly Ayotte Claimed Planned Parenthood “Harvested Babies’ Body Parts” When Explaining Her Vote Redirecting Planned Parenthood Funding
2015: When Addressing Her Vote To Redirect Planned Parenthood Funding To Community Health Centers, Kelly Ayotte Said “I Do Not Support The Use Of Taxpayer Dollars To Fund A Private Organization That Performs Hundreds Of Thousands Of Abortions Each Year And Harvests Babies' Body Parts.” According to a press release by the Office of New Hampshire Senator Kelly Ayotte via Archive.org, “U.S. Senator Kelly Ayotte (R-NH) today voted in favor of a procedural motion to advance legislation introduced by Senator Joni Ernst (R-IA) that would redirect federal funding for Planned Parenthood to community health centers. She released the following statement: ‘I do not support the use of taxpayer dollars to fund a private organization that performs hundreds of thousands of abortions each year and harvests babies' body parts, which is why I voted to redirect funding to community health centers that provide women's health services such as cancer screenings, mammograms, and contraceptives.’” [Press Release – Office of New Hampshire Senator Kelly Ayotte via Archive.org, 8/3/15]
¶ Kelly Ayotte Voted To Limit Contraception Access, Arguing In Favor Of “Conscience Clauses” And Exceptions
¶ Kelly Ayotte Continued To Defend Her Vote On “Conscience Clauses,” Which Allowed Employers To Refuse Reproductive Health Services
2024: Kelly Ayotte Defended Her Vote To Allow Religious Employers To Limit Reproductive Health Care Services Provided To Employees. According to an op-ed in The New Hampshire Union Leader, “To go one step further, the vote I took was to protect the right to religious freedom enshrined in the First Amendment to the Constitution and protected by federal law, which was under attack by the Obama administration to force certain organizations to pay for coverage that violated their religious beliefs. In fact, in 2014 this issue went to the United States Supreme Court and they ruled against the Obama administration. Unlike the Democrats, I will always put the Constitution first.” [Kelly Ayotte Op-Ed - New Hampshire Union Leader, 3/25/24]
¶ Kelly Ayotte Voted Against Guaranteeing Access To Contraception For Women With Health Insurance Plans With Religious Objections
2014: Kelly Ayotte Voted Against Democrat-Introduced Legislation That Would “Ensure Access To Contraception For Women Who Get Their Health Insurance From Companies With Religious Objections.” According to the Associated Press, “Republicans blocked a bill designed to override a Supreme Court ruling and ensure access to contraception for women who get their health insurance from companies with religious objections. The vote was 56-43 to move ahead on the legislation - dubbed the ‘Not My Boss’ Business Act’ by proponents - four short of the 60 necessary to proceed. […] [Senate Minority Leader] McConnell joined with two Republican women, Fischer and Sen. Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire, in backing separate legislation that would reaffirm current law on access to contraception and in calling for a Food and Drug Administration study on whether contraceptives could be sold over the counter without a prescription.” [Associated Press, 7/16/14]
¶ Kelly Ayotte Voted Against Affordable Care Act Contraception Coverage
2013: Kelly Ayotte Voted Against Protecting ACA’s Health Care And Contraception Coverage Provisions For Women. In March 2013, Kelly Ayotte voted against an amendment that, according to The Hill’s Floor Action Blog, would “protect women’s healthcare coverage and employer-provided contraceptive coverage authorized under the Affordable Care Act.” According to the Congressional Record, the purpose of the amendment was to “establish a deficit-neutral reserve fund to protect women’s access to health care, including primary and preventative health care, family planning and birth control, and employer-provided contraceptive coverage, such as was provided under the Affordable Care Act.” The vote was on an amendment to the Senate version of the fiscal year 2014 budget resolution. The Senate adopted the amendment by a vote of 56 to 43. The underlying budget resolution later passed the Senate, but Congress had taken no further action on it as of September, 2013. [Senate Vote 54, 3/22/13; The Hill’s Floor Action Blog, 3/22/13; Congressional Record, 3/21/13; Congressional Actions, S. Amdt 438; Congressional Actions, S.Con.Res. 8]
¶
Kelly Ayotte Claimed Religious Universities And Hospitals Should Have Been Exempt From The Affordable Care Act’s Contraception Coverage Mandate
2012: Kelly Ayotte Argued That Religious Universities And Hospitals Should Be Granted An Exemption From ACA Requirements For Contraception Coverage. According to the New Hampshire Union Leader, “Catholic-based institutions say they will face tough decisions if they must start covering contraception and other reproductive services in their health care insurance to employees. […] The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced this month it would include a narrow exemption for religious organizations that employ and serve those of the same faith. HHS said the exemption, part of President Barack Obama's health care law, would cover churches and might apply to primary and secondary religious schools, according to an HHS spokesman. But it would not apply to most religious universities or hospitals because they generally do not employ or serve primarily people who share their religious tenets and do not have as their purpose the teaching of religious values, the spokesman said. […] U.S. Sen. Kelly Ayotte said: ‘Religious freedom is a foundational American right, enshrined in the Constitution. Government must not force religious organizations to compromise core elements of their faith. The President pledged to honor conscience protections in America's health care policies, and I will continue to push for those rights as I pursue my efforts to repeal and replace the health care law.’” [New Hampshire Union Leader, 1/28/12]
¶ As New Hampshire Attorney General, Kelly Ayotte Defended New Hampshire’s Parental Notification Law
2005: As New Hampshire Attorney General, Kelly Ayotte Defended New Hampshire’s Abortion Parental Notification Law Before The U.S. Supreme Court, Which Provided An Exception For The Mother’s Life But Not Her Health. According to the Fox News, “The Supreme Court wrestled Wednesday with how to handle a New Hampshire law that requires a parent be told before a daughter ends her pregnancy, an emotional showdown in the court's first abortion rights case in five years. […] New Hampshire Attorney General Kelly Ayotte struggled to field sharp questions on why the state made an exception to allow abortions when a mother's life -- but not her health -- is in danger. The court has said before that abortion restrictions should include a health exception. O'Connor, along with Justices Anthony Kennedy, Stephen Breyer and Ruth Bader Ginsburg, zeroed in on how doctors would avoid being prosecuted or sued if they performed an abortion if a severely sick minor did not want to notify a parent and a judge was unavailable to provide the necessary approval.” [Fox News, 11/30/05]
¶ Kelly Ayotte Received And Promoted Endorsements From Anti-Abortion Organizations
¶ Kelly Ayotte Received Support From The Right To Life, Susan B. Anthony List, And New Hampshire Citizens For Life
2015: Kelly Ayotte Had A 100% Rating From The National Right To Life Committee And A 0% Rating From Both Planned Parenthood Action Fund And NARAL Pro-Choice America. According to IJReview via Archive.org, “The first-term senator from New Hampshire has a: *NARAL Pro-Choice America rating of 0% *Planned Parenthood Action Fund rating of 0% *National Right to Life Committee rating of 100% *2010 endorsement from the pro-life Susan B. Anthony List[.]” [IJReview via Archive.org, 8/19/15]
2010: Kelly Ayotte’s Campaign Website Touted Her Endorsements From Susan B. Anthony List, New Hampshire Citizens For Life, And New Hampshire National Right To Life.
[Kelly Ayotte For Senate, Archived 11/4/10]
2010: Kelly Ayotte Said She Was “Proud To Have The Support Of” Anti-Choice Groups Like Susan B. Anthony List And The National Right To Life Committee. According to the Foster’s Daily Democrat, “Kelly Ayotte (pronounced AY'-aht), the former attorney general who leads in the preprimary polls, said she was ‘proud to have the support’ of major anti-abortion groups such as the National Right to Life Committee and Susan B. Anthony List. She said she opposed abortion except in cases involving incest, rape or when the life of the mother is threatened.” [Foster’s Daily Democrat, 9/10/10]