‘Sister senators’ attacked over abortion votes in South Carolina primary | Palmetto Politics

Gustafson and Shealy voted for the six-week ban in February and rejected it in April. That was treason, Warren said.

The House of Representatives did not address their concerns before sending a flawed bill back to the Senate, the two women said.

Warren has the toughest stance on abortion, supporting a ban on pregnancy with no exceptions in cases of rape or incest, and a personal status law that would allow lawyers to charge women with murder if they have an abortion.

“The moment a human being begins to exist, he is a human being. That is all. No matter what circumstances made him a human being,” he said.

Kennedy and Blackmon support a complete ban on conception with limited exceptions, consistent with legislation Shealy and Gustafson opposed last year.

Warren and Blackmon said they were supported by the political arm of South Carolina Citizens for Life, the state’s largest anti-abortion group.

Shealy and Gustafson dismiss the men as candidates who have only one issue, which they themselves oppose. “I don’t know what they are running for, because they have only ever attacked me,” Shealy said.

Shealy has raised more than $200,000, according to campaign finance records. Kennedy has raised about $82,000, including a $55,000 loan. Warren has raised just over $20,000.

Blackmon is, at least on paper, a strong challenger. He won his district council twice, spent $94,000 more than Gustafson in the race to $70,000 (aided by a sizable loan), and doubled Gustafson’s fundraising in the final weeks of the campaign.

“I believe that many public officials have, at some point, acted in matters that were against the will of the people,” he said.

As she drove through tiny Pageland in Chesterfield County on a recent weekday, collecting votes, Gustafson, of Camden, pointed to homes and recalled how residents had supported her narrow victory in 2020. Now she’s not so sure.

“Who faced the biggest challenge after that vote last year? Me,” she said. “I lost a lot of support with that one vote.”