Planned Parenthood PAC registers for Fairbanks and Juneau municipal races

A political committee tied to Planned Parenthood's six-state advocacy arm has registered to spend in the Fairbanks and Juneau municipal elections, according to an amendment filed Aug. 27 with the Alaska Public Offices Commission.

The filing adds the Fairbanks North Star Borough, the City of Fairbanks and the City and Borough of Juneau to Planned Parenthood Votes Alaska PAC's plans for the year, alongside the Anchorage municipal election and the state primary and general. All three of the newly added jurisdictions vote Oct. 6.

The registration names no candidates and reports no money spent. It establishes that the committee intends to be active in those races and has filed the paperwork that lets it spend there.

The committee's stated purpose is identifying and endorsing candidates it considers supportive of abortion rights, on behalf of Planned Parenthood Alliance Advocates, which operates across Alaska, Hawaii, Idaho, Indiana, Kentucky and Washington. Morgan Lim chairs the committee; Lauren Stephens is treasurer.

The PAC is a separate entity from the health care organization. Planned Parenthood's regional affiliate runs health centers in Anchorage and Fairbanks. It closed its Juneau clinic last year and sued the state in June over Alaska's ban on abortion medication prescribed through telehealth.