On Tuesday, both New Jersey and Virginia elected pro-choice governors to lead their states. Jim McGreevey (D) won the New Jersey gubernatorial contest with 56 percent of the vote, beating vocally anti-choice Bret Shundler. Exit polls indicate that voters supporting McGreevey were also concerned primarily about the economy and education. Schundler is for school vouchers. In Virginia, 52 percent of voters elected pro-choice candidate Mark Warner (D) for governor. Warner beat staunchly anti-choice Republican candidate Mark Earley (R) who opposes abortion even in cases of rape or incest.
Cleveland, Ohio and Annapolis, Maryland elected women governors for the first time in their respective histories. Jane Campbell (D), a long-time feminist activist, won the Cleveland mayoral election with 54 percent of the vote. Campbell is the former field director of ERA America and has served in the Ohio state legislature for twelve-years. In Annapolis, voters elected Ellen Moyer (D) to be their next mayor. Moyer served as Executive Director of the Maryland Commission for Women where she helped form domestic violence shelters. She has also been a supporter of sexual harassment laws in Maryland.
