Project 50 July 2025 Political Newsletter
Thank you to everyone who joined us at our event on Martha’s Vineyard in Massachusetts earlier this month. Liane Groth Hulka from Indiana Reproductive Freedom PAC shared her vision for reproductive healthcare in Indiana and how critical the work of independent state-based political organizations is to advance access to healthcare in states where abortion care is banned.
As the latest wave of attacks on abortion care from the Trump Administration play out in courts across the country, we are heartened by the impactful work our state partners continue to do. In Arkansas and Indiana, we’re wrapping up an important infrastructure building phase, and we are now supporting them with fundraising to build their electoral war chests ahead of the 2026 mid-term elections. Planning for the mid-term elections will pick up later this year with in-person electoral planning retreats scheduled in Arkansas, Indiana, and Missouri.
Thank you so much for your continued support,
Marlou Svenson, Political Director
Project 50's July event on Martha's Vineyard, featuring Liane Hulka (right), the Board Chair and Co-Founder of Indiana Reproductive Freedom PAC.
National Landscape Updates
On Monday, July 28, a Federal Judge ruled that Medicaid recipients may continue to access healthcare at Planned Parenthood health centers. Judge Indira Talwani ruled that the Trump administration had unconstitutionally singled out Planned Parenthood.
A Federal Judge allows 40-year-old Nevada parental consent law to take effect for the first time. “A 40-year-old Nevada law requiring minors having an abortion to first notify their parents or guardians is now in effect for the first time, after a federal district court judge lifted an administrative block Tuesday afternoon.”
The Idaho abortion rights ballot initiative is well underway. “Idahoans United for Women and Families hosted the event as it continues its ballot initiative campaign to restore reproductive rights in the state. They must collect 70,700 signatures by April 30, 2026, to qualify the “Reproductive Freedom & Privacy Act” for the November 2026 ballot.” Learn more about Idahoans United for Women and Families HERE.
A pregnant woman in Tennessee was denied prenatal care because her physician objected to the fact that she was not married. Tennessee’s Medical Ethics Defense Act allows a physician to deny care to patients if they disagree with their “lifestyle.”
Project 50 State Updates
Progress Arkansas Project
We’re thrilled to share that Progress Arkansas Project has officially launched! Check out their new website HERE and follow them on Facebook HERE. Project 50 will match the first $5,000 in contributions to Progress Arkansas Project. Check out their mission statement below, and please consider supporting their work by clicking HERE.
“At Progress Arkansas Project, we are dedicated to safeguarding and expanding reproductive rights in Arkansas, and are committed to fighting restrictive policies, promoting reproductive rights, and ensuring that every Arkansan–regardless of income, race, or background–has the right to safe, affordable, and stigma-free reproductive healthcare free from governmental interference.”
Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin led a multi-state letter asking Congress to pass a law that would prevent shield laws in states that support abortion access. Shield laws protect physicians who ship abortion pills to states where abortion care is illegal.
Arkansas Abortion Ban Fails to Stop Access — New Data Shows Increase in Abortions
Despite Arkansas’s near-total abortion ban and official reports of zero abortions in the state, at least 5,650 Arkansans accessed abortion care in 2024 — more than before the ban took effect. According to new data from the Society of Family Planning and the Guttmacher Institute, Arkansans are turning to telehealth abortion pills and out-of-state travel to access care, with thousands heading to Kansas and Illinois alone.
The rise in abortions reflects national trends, with more than a million abortions nationwide in 2024 and a growing share — nearly 25% — happening via telehealth, protected by shield laws in other states.
These numbers likely undercount the true need, especially for those facing financial or logistical barriers. The Arkansas Abortion Support Network helped fund nearly $400,000 in patient care last year and continues to assist residents in navigating care through its hotline at (501) 487-5244.
Arkansas’s ban, which has no exceptions for rape or incest, has not stopped abortion — it has just made access harder, especially for the most vulnerable.
Indiana Reproductive Freedom PAC
We’re thrilled to share that after extensive polling, research, and collaboration with website designers, Our Choice Coalition has rebranded to become the Indiana Reproductive Freedom PAC. Check out their new website HERE. Please consider supporting their efforts by contributing HERE.
Access MO
Breaking the Anti-Repro Supermajority in MO in 2026
Access MO is laser focused on breaking the anti-choice supermajority in the MO state legislature in 2026. Access MO has a viable path, strong candidates, and engaged and motivated voters.
"We are using our time and your generous donations to Access MO to build more repro power across the state to ensure that we can take advantage of these opportunities and celebrate lots of wins in 2026!"
Protecting MO's Constitutional Right to Reproductive Healthcare
Abortions are being legally provided in Missouri! However, in May, the Missouri legislature referred a constitutional amendment to the ballot to gut the 2024 reproductive freedom constitutional amendment that voters passed and reinstate another abortion ban. The legislature’s policy also included a gratuitous ban on healthcare for transgender minors, which is already banned under state statute. It will appear on the ballot in 2026, as Amendment 3 (the same Amendment number as our reproductive freedom measure that voters passed in 2024). Do not be fooled! This is a direct attack on the will of the people.
The same groups that joined forces in 2024 — a strong coalition of reproductive health, rights, and freedom organizations, including frontline providers, LGBTQ+ groups, racial justice organizations, labor partners, and committed state and national funders — have been closely tracking legislative referrals and setting the stage for a strong defensive campaign. The coalition has formed a new entity, Stop the Ban. We are prepared to keep fighting, and we will win this again.
Stop the Ban is seeking grassroots donations to show strong Missouri support.
Join Access MO on Tuesday, September 9 to honor the 2025 Access MO Champions of Reproductive Justice. To learn more about the event and register click HERE.
More Project 50 Updates
Project 50 has several events planned for the fall!
We invite you to join us at our Washington, DC Breakfast Event or Evening Reception on September 10th or our New York City Event on October 8th. Check out the event details below!
We hope you can join us for one of the above events! Please reach out to info@project50.net to RSVP directly or if you have any questions.
Thank you for your partnership in this work!
Paid for by Project 50 (project50.net) and not authorized by any candidate or candidate’s committee.