NEW: “GOP congressional candidate Joe Teirab’s anti-abortion views run deep”

Republican U.S. House candidate Joe Teirab's anti-abortion views run so deep that he attributes his very existence to anti-abortion advocates.

Teirab's mother almost got an abortion when she found out she was pregnant with him. She went to New Life Family Services - a Minnesota crisis pregnancy center - and "by the grace of God" they "encouraged her to have me," Teirab said during a GOP candidate debate in January.

"And so now, here I am. And I'm on the board of that crisis pregnancy center, and I'm honored to do it. I am pro-life, because all life is precious and all life is created in the image of God," Teirab said. Crisis pregnancy centers are medical clinics that seek to deter women from getting an abortion.

Teirab now says if elected to represent Minnesota's 2nd Congressional District, he'd oppose a federal abortion ban.

His opposition to a federal abortion ban, however, would seem to contradict his responses earlier this year to a candidate questionnaire of a prominent Minnesota anti-abortion group.

Teirab's answers to a candidate survey from Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life indicate he favors giving the federal government a role in abortion policy.

Teirab answered "yes" in response to a question about whether he "recognized a federal role in protecting unborn children" and whether he would "vote for chemical abortion legislation related to restricting its use, supporting the collecting and reporting of data on complications, or increasing safeguards for women."

"Chemical abortion" is how anti-abortion advocates refer to the common two-drug process for ending a pregnancy. (Medical authorities call it "medication abortion.") This method was used in more than 60% of all abortions nationwide in 2023, according to Guttmacher.

New Life Family Services - where Teirab serves on the board - operates First Care Pregnancy Centers, which have locations throughout the Twin Cities and in Rochester. First Care on its website promotes "abortion pill reversal" - a practice that the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists calls "unproved and unethical."

Teirab in the questionnaire also said he would vote against bills that "would weaken any pro-life law or policy."

Teirab has been an anti-abortion advocate since his college years, when he was the executive director of the Cornell University Republicans. In a 2009 Cornell Daily Sun article, a reporter quoted Teirab about a campus anti-abortion lecture. Teirab told the reporter that "I can see where the pro-choice people are coming from, but the unborn have a right to life too, regardless of the conception … The government should support women more comprehensively and give women resources collectively."