In a public statement, state Senate candidate Cecilia Tkaczyk (KAT-chik) today called on Assemblyman and state Senate candidate George Amedore (R-Rotterdam) to publicly disavow the statements of Republican congressman and U.S. Senate candidate Todd Akin, now infamous for his suggestion that in cases of “legitimate rape,” women’s bodies somehow blocked unwanted pregnancies.

“Everyone on the right from Karl Rove to Mitt Romney has disavowed or condemned Congressman Akin’s statements, but Mr. Amedore hasn’t spoken up yet,” said Cecilia Tkaczyk. “I want to know this not just as his opponent for State Senate, but as a woman, a longtime resident of Upstate New York, and a business owner in this district: does George Amedore see distinctions and levels of ‘legitimacy’ in rape? And are his anti-choice views so extreme that like Congressman Akin, he would suggest that a woman should be prevented from making her own  reproductive healthcare decisions even in the case of rape?

“I encourage Mr. Amedore to state for the record publicly his full thoughts on these issues,” concluded Tkaczyk. “Families and individuals in this district want moderate representatives who work for them.  We have always looked for common sense in our elected officials and reject ideological extremism. Now is the time for Mr. Amedore tell all of us whether he stands in the mainstream or outside of it.”

George Amedore’s Extreme Anti-Choice and Anti-Woman Record

The Tkaczyk campaign’s challenge to Mr. Amedore stands against the backdrop of his fairly one-sided record on reproductive choice:

• Received endorsement of NYS Right to Life PAC
• Refused to state whether he would support abortion in cases of incest or rape, or even when the life of the pregnant woman is endangered.
• Supports abstinence-only sex education.
• Supports allowing licensed pharmacists to refuse to dispense emergency contraception.
  Mr. Amedore’s anti-choice record is coupled with a negative record on other measures respecting women’s rights and equality:
• Voted Against the New York State Fair Pay Act in 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, and 2012
• Voted Against the Domestic Violence Escalation Prevention Act in 2010, 2011, and 2012