A woman nervously looks into her rearview mirror as a patrolman turns on his car’s lights and sirens. She is less than a mile away from leaving Alabama to seek abortion services, but it’s too late: The next thing she knows, she is handed a pregnancy test and is handcuffed.
This encounter is depicted in a raw new television ad titled “Fugitive.” The Campaign for Democracy, a political action committee established by Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat from California, created the ad.
Set to air on Monday in Alabama, where Republicans have pushed for prosecuting women who travel elsewhere for an abortion. The state’s strict abortion ban prohibits the procedure at all stages of pregnancy, without exceptions for rape and incest.
“Trump Republicans want to criminalize young Alabama women who travel for reproductive care,” states the ad’s narrator.
The ad then shows the patrolman approaching the vehicle: “Miss, I’m going to need you to step out of the vehicle,” he says, tapping the kit on the driver’s side door, “take a pregnancy test.”
The ad is set to run on broadcast and cable television, as well as digital platforms like YouTube, for a two-week period, according to the PAC. The cost of the ad purchase was not immediately disclosed.
Alabama’s attorney general, Steve Marshall, a Republican, has been in conflict with the Justice Department and abortion assistance providers over whether the state has the authority to prosecute individuals or groups aiding women in leaving the state for the procedure.
Last month, Republicans introduced a bill in the Alabama House that would make it a misdemeanor to harbor or transport a minor seeking abortion services.
While Republicans have emphasized border crossings in their messaging, Democrats have focused on the issue of abortion access following the overturning of Roe v. Wade in 2022 by the U.S. Supreme Court. This has helped Democratic candidates secure key wins during the 2022 midterm elections and subsequent races.
In February, the Alabama Supreme Court ruled that frozen embryos were individuals with rights, creating uncertainty around in vitro fertilization. The state later enacted a law granting I.V.F. clinics legal immunity, but did not address the legal status of embryos as human beings.
In another significant ruling, the Arizona Supreme Court recently upheld a law from 1864 that effectively bans most abortions. This decision could have broad implications for women’s healthcare and political dynamics in Arizona, a crucial battleground state.
Mr. Newsom stated in a social media post that California, bordering Arizona, is prepared to assist women affected by the ruling.
“Arizona was not even a state — it was a territory — when this severe abortion ban was passed,” he remarked. “That’s the extent of this. California remains ready to help Arizonans access reproductive healthcare.”
