Emily’s List goes after Yoder

An advocacy group supporting abortion rights is wading into the Kansas Congressional campaign and has identified Republican U.S. Rep. Kevin Yoder as a target in the 2018 election and extended an endorsement to one of his possible Democratic opponents, Andrea Ramsey.

Emily's List, an advocacy group aimed at electing Democratic women who support abortion rights, announced Friday that it would endorse Ramsey, a candidate for the Democratic nomination to run against Yoder, whose district covers Kansas City and its suburbs. Ramsey, a Leawood attorney and former nonprofit health care clinic president has criticized Yoder for his support of a U.S. House bill aimed at repealing and replacing the Affordable Care Act.

In a news release, Emily's List President Stephanie Schriock also criticized Yoder's vote for the health care plan and said he prioritized his party's agenda over his district. Schriock said Ramsey would bring "perspective" to Washington.

"After a successful career in the private sector, Andrea used her business and law experience to expand access to health care for underserved children in Wyandotte County," Schriock said in the release.

Emily's List spent about $36 million advocating during the 2016 election cycle, a spokesman for the group said.

Last week, Emily's List also placed Yoder on a list of 50 Republican lawmakers it has deemed as vulnerable because of his stances on repealing and replacing the ACA, Planned Parenthood and equal pay. While Yoder won re-election by more than 11 percentage points, voters in his district narrowly favored former Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton over now-President Donald Trump, said University of Kansas political science professor Patrick Miller.

Earlier this year, a poll conducted by Public Policy Polling found that more than 50 percent of voters in Yoder's district supported the Affordable Care Act and opposed the House health care bill.

Emily's List also endorsed U.S. Rep. Lynn Jenkins' opponent, Margie Wakefield, in 2014. Jenkins, a Kansas Republican, won the district handily.

Credit: By Allison Kite [email protected]