NARAL Pro-Choice America and NARAL Pro-Choice Virginia Targeting Cuccinelli for Meddling in Women's Private Health Decisions

As Terry McAuliffe and Ken Cuccinelli prepare for the final debate of the Virginia governor's race today, NARAL Pro-Choice America and NARAL Pro-Choice Virginia have released a new GOTV ad titled, "May We Come In."

The online ad, which highlights Cuccinelli's extreme record on a woman's right to choose by depicting him as an intrusive cardboard Ken Cuccinelli figure in a bedroom and even at the pharmacy, underscores his position that the influence of elected officials belongs in the private spaces and decisions of women and families across the Commonwealth.

This ad, to run now through Election Day, targets pro-choice, drop-off women voters across the state. It also targets women using mobile devices by employing innovative multi-screen digital advertising which penetrates thousands of web properties, including desktops, laptops, tablets and smartphones.

WATCH THE AD HERE: https://ProChoiceAmerica.org/StopKen

"In the final two weeks of the most-watched Governor's race in the country, Ken Cuccinelli is doubling down on out-of-touch statements, most recently comparing abortion to slavery," said Ilyse Hogue, president of NARAL Pro-Choice America. "It's no wonder that polls seem to credit Terry McAuliffe's lead to his strong positions on women rights and reproductive-health care. But there's too much at stake and we've got ten days to go. We know that getting voters to the polls is key, so we are coupling our 'multi-screen' ad campaign with phone banking and canvassing to have an honest conversation with voters about the real consequences of a Cuccinelli-led government. From now through Election Day, we are expanding efforts in this race to ensure that we have a governor who represents the pro-choice majority in Virginia--Terry McAuliffe."

Two of the state's abortion clinics in Northern Virginia and Norfolk have already closed and, according to a recent piece by The Washington Post editorial board, "if Mr. Cuccinelli is elected governor in November, most of the remaining 18 clinics are likely to shut their doors within months. That would make access to abortion, as well as to family planning advice, difficult for thousands of Virginia women, particularly in rural areas; in some cases, it would become practically impossible."

"It is absolutely crucial that voters elect Terry McAuliffe on November 5th - the only candidate who trusts the women of Virginia to make their own health decisions," said Tarina Keene, executive director of NARAL pro-Choice Virginia. "That's why we have been on the ground for months talking to Virginians and exposing Cuccinelli's extreme anti-choice record. Recent polls reinforce what we've heard in thousands of conversations with Virginia voters - women outright reject Cuccinelli's determination to interfere in their personal, private lives and that of their families. We are confident that the women of Virginia will reject Cuccinelli on November 5th."

A Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research survey commissioned by NARAL Pro-Choice America found that choice is among the most motivating messages that will drive Virginia women to the polls for Terry McAuliffe.

In addition to the online ads, the campaign run by NARAL Pro-Choice America and NARAL Pro-Choice Virginia includes: 100,000 pieces of direct mail targeting drop-off, pro-choice women particularly in Northern Virginia, Richmond and Hampton Roads; phone banking to thousands of pro-choice women across the state; a robust canvassing operation; and a previous online ad campaign hitting Cuccinelli for his role in ensuring state funding for so-called Crisis Pregnancy Centers.