A Georgia anti-abortion group has announced it will spend at least $3 million on an advertising campaign heading into the 2020 election.
Georgia Life Alliance will launch its campaign this week, starting with a radio ad supporting U.S. Sens. David Perdue and Kelly Loeffler, who the ad says "will stop Washington liberals undermining our pro-life reforms with their impeachment witchhunt."
The group’s executive director Joshua Edmonds said a goal of the campaign is to combat out-of-state money that’s being spent by activists as an attempt to oust lawmakers who voted for legislation limiting access to abortion last year.
The Georgia General Assembly last year passed House Bill 341, which would outlaw abortions once a doctor can detect fetal cardiac activity — usually around six weeks of pregnancy and before many women know they are pregnant.
The law is being challenged in court and a federal judge has temporarily stopped it from taking effect while the case makes its way through the legal system.
Activists on both sides immediately announced plans to work to either vote out or protect lawmakers who supported the legislation.
“Georgia is a state that values life, and we are going to highlight that over the next 10 months,” Edmonds said.
The national abortion rights group NARAL Pro-Choice America announced last year that it was launching a digital advertising “educational campaign” that targets state legislators who voted in support of HB 481.
They are planning to spend $34.7 million across eight states, including Georgia.
NARAL Pro-Choice Georgia Director Laura Simmons said she wasn’t concerned about campaigns launched by anti-abortion groups.
“No dollar amount will change the fact that these anti-choice organizations are working against public opinion, especially in swing districts in the state,” she said.
Anti-abortion group Family Policy Alliance of Georgia also has pledged to support Republican candidates who will challenge Democratic incumbents who voted against HB 481.
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