Sharp differences from Foster, Evans on abortion in 11th District race
Democratic U.S. Rep. Bill Foster of Naperville and Republican challenger Jerry Evans of Warrenville disagree about whether abortion should be legal across America.
The 11th Congressional District hopefuls discussed abortion rights and other issues during a joint, online interview with the Daily Herald. The entire conversation can be viewed at dailyherald.com.
The battle over whether abortion should be allowed in the U.S. intensified in 2022 when the Supreme Court overturned the historic Roe v. Wade decision, which had made the medical procedure legal everywhere. It’s now up to the individual states to decide whether abortion should be legal, and many have banned or severely restricted it.
Evans, a music school owner, said he opposes abortion but doesn’t judge those who feel differently. Although he backed the idea of a federal abortion ban when he ran for the GOP nomination for the 11th District seat in 2022, he said he no longer does and wouldn’t pursue such a law if elected.
Recent media reports indicating Evans would support a national abortion ban were erroneous because of a typing error, a campaign adviser has said.
Evans voiced support for pregnancy-related policies he believes all Americans would back. As examples, Evans said he supports mandatory child support from fathers for pregnant women and more funding for centers that encourage woman to maintain pregnancies rather than have abortions. He also said parents should be notified by medical personnel if a minor seeks an abortion.
Evans criticized Foster for voting in 2023 against legislation that would establish rules for medical care when a child is born alive during an abortion or an attempted abortion. That proposal cleared the House but stalled in the Senate.
Foster later responded by noting that killing babies after they’re born “already is illegal in every state.”
In the joint interview, Evans refused to say if he thinks there are any situations in which abortion should be allowed. A campaign adviser later said Evans believes abortion should be allowed in cases of incest and rape or when the mother’s life is at risk because of the pregnancy.
Foster, who has served the 11th District since 2013 and who previously represented the 14th District, long has been a staunch defender of abortion rights.
Two years ago, Foster called the Supreme Court's overturning of Roe v. Wade “a tragedy” and he supported the Women's Health Protection Act, which would’ve made abortion legal across the country. Foster also voted for the Ensuring Women's Right to Reproductive Freedom Act, which would’ve protected women who travel across state lines for reproductive health care. Both proposals cleared the U.S. House but stalled in the Senate.
In the recent joint interview, Foster said he still supports restoring the federal protections of the Roe v. Wade decision. Male-dominated legislatures shouldn’t tell women what they can do with their bodies, he said, calling such action “fundamentally wrong.”
The 11th District encompasses portions of Cook, DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry, Will, DeKalb and Boone counties. Nov. 5 is the last day to vote.