GOP Candidate For Governor Who Said He ‘Would Try to Ban Abortion’ Calls Abortion a ‘Protected Constitutional Right’ in New Ad

Republican nominee for governor of Minnesota Scott Jensen released an awkward ad this week in which he holds a baby and does a full reversal on his position on abortion rights in the state.

“I have delivered over 500 babies in my career. Abortion is divisive and Tim Walz is weaponizing the issue in Minnesota,” Jensen begins saying in the ad, taking aim at his opponent.

“It’s a protected constitutional right and no governor can change that. And I’m not running to do that. I’m running because we need safe streets, excellent schools, parental rights and more money in the family budget. That’s what I’ll fight for. Let’s focus on the issues that matter,” Jensen concluded.

I am officially obsessed with Scott Jensen’s train wreck of a campaign for Minnesota Governor. He has nearly no money, and this is the ad he just went up with.

It’s hard to figure what’s even happening here anymore. pic.twitter.com/BeyXebkPmk

— Tim Hogan (@timjhogan) September 7, 2022

The ad raised eyebrows as Jensen is being attacked in the state by a liberal group called A Better Minnesota, which has spent at least $1 million attacking the Republican on abortion rights.

The group has released an ad highlighting a March interview with Minnesota Public Radio, in which Jensen declared, “I would try to ban abortion.”

Jensen also said on WCCO Radio on May 5th that he supported banning abortion without exceptions for rape and incest “unless the mother’s life is in danger.”

The local Fox affiliate in Minnesota fact-checked Jensen’s comments in the attack ad. Fox 9 News’s Theo Keith concluded:

The ad accurately quotes Jensen from the interview, though it includes only a snippet of his answer.

“I think that we’re basically in a situation where we should be governed by pro-life. There is no reason for us to be having abortions going on,” Jensen went on to say. “We have tremendous opportunities and availability of birth control. We don’t need to be snuffing out lives that if left alone will produce a viable newborn, that may go on to be the next Albert Einstein.”

At the time, Jensen was running in a crowded Republican field for the GOP’s endorsement, which he ultimately won in May at the Republican state convention.

RealClearPolitics average of polls shows Walz leading Jensen in the November election by single digits. But, the latest KSTP/SurveyUSA taken between August 30 and Sept 4th shows Waltz with an 18-point lead. Most of the polling in the race had been conducted before the Supreme Court ended federal protections for abortion in June.