– GLENN JORDAN

Staff Writer

PORTLAND – Democratic gubernatorial candidate Libby Mitchell and Democratic U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree have been endorsed by the Planned Parenthood of Northern New England Action Fund.

“As the mother of two young children, it is important to me that we elect leaders who will help ensure that women have access to quality health care and family planning services so that they can make informed choices about how and when to start their families,” said Tanna Clews, who chairs the organization’s board of trustees.

At a news conference Thursday in the conference room of a Portland law firm, Clews said her organization’s political action committee will send three mailings to voters in Maine’s 1st District and begin running a 30-second television ad in support of Pingree’s re-election today.

Clews described Mitchell, the only woman among the five gubernatorial candidates on the ballot, as firmly pro-choice and someone who “will ensure that national health care reform is implemented in Maine so that women are not left out of important health services.”

Alison Bates, a nurse practitioner who is featured in the TV ad, said the organization made no endorsement in Maine’s 2nd District because it has no Planned Parenthood health centers.

Staff Writer Glenn Jordan can be contacted at 791-6425 or at:

gjordan@pressherald.com