New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham speaks on stage during the second day of the DNC.
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The NPR Network will be reporting live from Chicago throughout the week bringing you the latest on the Democratic National Convention.
New Mexico’s Democratic governor, Michelle Lujan Grisham, who previously served as the state’s health secretary before getting elected to Congress, spoke at the DNC tonight on the topic of health care.
“This election is about protecting our democracy and securing our freedoms, including the right to affordable, quality health care,” she said.
She called health care a personal issue for herself and Vice President Kamala Harris, who lost her mother to colon cancer.
“And it’s personal to Americans across the country who know what it’s like when someone they love gets sick,” she said.
Watch her full remarks:
When President Biden was elected in 2020, he considered Lujan Grisham to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, a post currently held by Xavier Becerra.
She touted decades of work throughout her career to lower prescription drug prices, praising Harris for “delivering it” through the Inflation Reduction Act.
Before the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June 2022, Lujan Grisham successfully fought to eliminate New Mexico’s then-dormant abortion ban. After the ruling, she issued an executive order to protect out-of-state patients and providers from investigation, discipline or extradition and worked with the state’s Democratic-controlled Legislature to protect and expand access to reproductive health care.
Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign team vetted Lujan Grisham as a potential running mate, according to Politico. Lujan Grisham is also a personal friend of Harris, who officiated her 2022 wedding to husband Manny Cordova at Harris’ residence.