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Nirav Shah targets Trump-era abortion threats in Maine run
Shah accused Trump and other Republicans of attempting to take away the rights of women.
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Jeffin T. Kaleekal - Fri, 17, Apr 2026
- 04:45 EDT
- 30
Nirav Shah / Nirav Shah via X
Indian-origin Democrat Nirav Shah, who is currently running for the Maine governor’s office, made key campaign promises to defend reproductive rights in the state on April 17.
Announcing his plans, he noted on his campaign page that at a time when U.S. President Donald Trump and other Republican leaders across the country are working to “ban abortion outright, criminalize providers, and track women across state lines,” he is proposing a different path.
Shah noted that Maine already has strong reproductive rights protection laws; however, he said “the same forces that overturned Roe v. Wade are actively looking for ways to reach into states like Maine, whether through federal action, interstate enforcement, and new forms of surveillance on women seeking abortions.”
Announcing a list of measures he will undertake if elected, he said he will enshrine reproductive freedom in Maine’s Constitution, ensure that cost is not a barrier to care, and strengthen Maine’s shield law to further protect providers and patients.
ALSO READ: Governor hopeful Nirav Shah outlines Maine education plan
Apart from these, Shah also plans to add safeguards to strengthen the data privacy of patients and caregivers while creating a stockpile of the abortion drug mifepristone.
Highlighting the significance of his plans, Shah said on X, “I’m proud to be the first and only Democratic candidate for governor to release a comprehensive plan to protect women’s reproductive freedom in Maine.”
On his campaign website, Shah also accused Donald Trump and other Republican leaders of attempting to “take rights away,” and said, “access to reproductive care is about freedom, dignity, and respect, and as governor, I will never stop fighting to protect it.”
Nirav Shah is an Indian-origin public health leader and former principal deputy director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. He previously led the Maine CDC through the COVID-19 pandemic and said his gubernatorial campaign would focus on pragmatic leadership and rebuilding trust in government.
Shah was born in 1977 in Wisconsin to Indian immigrant parents and raised in the same state. He earned degrees in psychology and biology from the University of Louisville in 1999 before embarking on a career that has combined law, economics, and public health.
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