August 31, 2007

Beaufort House Candidates Discuss Reproductive Health

The day after Labor Day, September 4th, Beaufort will hold a special election for House District 124 to fill former State Representative Catherine Ceips (R-Beaufort) seat. Ms. Ceips was recently elected to the State Senate to complete the terms of Scott Richardson [R]. She now holds a seat in the state Senate for District 46 - Beaufort County. There are three Republican candidates running: Randy Bates, Shannon Erickson, & Diane DeWitt. Candidate information can be found here.
On August 29th, The Beaufort Regional Chamber’s Candidates Forum took place with more than 100 persons in attendance. The event was hosted by the Beaufort Gazette, Beaufort Regional Chamber of Commerce, Lady’s Island Business and Professional Association and Lowcountry Young Professionals. Prior to the Forum, questions were submitted by some members of the Together for Beaufort Teenage Pregnancy Committee regarding young peoples’ reproductive health.
Lisa Rentz, a TellThem! member, reported:
“After realizing that some of the questions pre-submitted by email would not be used, I decided to write-in a question: “Healthcare is a national problem, and STDs and teen pregnancy rates in SC are high. How would you improve access to health care and birth control?”
Each candidate’s answer focused on teen pregnancy and education in the schools. Diane DeWitt also mentioned improving healthcare in her closing remarks.
The next question asked was: “How would you have voted on the ultrasound bill: pro-choice or pro-life?”
Diane DeWitt and Shannon Erickson both clearly replied they would not have voted for it, it was only to intimidate women. Ms. Erickson went as far as to say something like even though she’s pro-life and catholic, everybody can have their own ideals. Randy Bates spent his minute talking about being pro-life.”
Related Links:
Beaufort Gazette Political Pulse on the candidates
Live blogger at the event
As a 501C3 non-profit organization, we do not endorse any candidates. However, we do educate constituents about candidate’s views on the issue of reproductive health.