Tiffany Smiley, a Republican challenging incumbent Democratic Sen. Patty Murray in Washington State in the 2022 election, said during an interview on CNN’s “State of the Union” that she supports allowing women to get abortions up until the point of fetal viability.
CNN’s Dana Bash noted that the state “guarantees the right to an abortion up to fetal viability,” and asked Smiley, “Do you support that?”
“I do,” Smiley answered.
In campaign ads Smiley claims to be pro-life but declares that she is opposed to a federal abortion ban.
“Patty Murray has spent millions to paint me as an extremist. I’m pro-life, but I oppose a federal abortion ban,” she says in one video.
“As an OBGYN triage nurse, I have seen the heartbreak and the tears. I am pro-life, but to be clear, I will oppose a federal abortion ban,” she says in another campaign advertisement. “It is past time that we stopped treating pregnancy like a disease that prevents women from getting a job or a raise. That’s why I will fight to ensure that women have access to contraception, health care, child care — and unlike Patty Murray, I will get it done.”
Washington state law says that, “The state may not deny or interfere with a pregnant individual’s right to choose to have an abortion prior to viability of the fetus, or to protect the pregnant individual’s life or health.”
Smiley came in a distant second place to Murray during the state’s primary election last month — the two will face-off later this year during the general election contest. Murray has served in the U.S. Senate for nearly three decades.
Democrats will be aiming to cling to control of the U.S. Senate during the 2022 midterms. The party currently has the majority because of Vice President Kamala Harris role as a tie-breaker in the Senate — the chamber is currently comprised of 50 Republicans, 48 Democrats, and two independent lawmakers who caucus with the Democrats.