Arizona's most powerful anti-abortion lobbyist retired following key defeats last year
Cathi Herrod in 2025. Photo by Gage Skidmore | Flickr/CC BY-SA 2.0
Cathi Herrod, who led the decades-long fight to enact dozens of anti-abortion laws in Arizona, left her post as president of the Center for Arizona Policy last month.
Herrod helmed Center for Arizona Policy, an evangelical Christian advocacy group that has fought for — and in many cases succeeded — laws restricting abortion and curtailing rights for gay and transgender people, for nearly 20 years before retiring in January.
Center for Arizona Policy is a powerful lobbying group that had a hand in most of the Grand Canyon State's abortion restrictions passed over the past 30 years, including the 15-week ban signed into law in 2022. That ban was nullified when voters in November approved the Arizona Abortion Access Act, which enshrined the right to abortion into the state constitution, and set the stage for the courts to unravel much of the abortion regulation that Herrod and her organization worked to place in state law to make it more difficult for women to access reproductive health care and for doctors to provide it.
'Arizona will come to regret passing Prop 139 — when girls and women lose their doctors and safeguards, when parents get shut out, when a staggering number of unborn lives end before they even begin, and when voters realize they have been lied to by proponents who would say anything to pass their extreme abortion amendment,' Herrod wrote in a statement shortly after the election.
Herrod and the Center for Arizona Policy were vocal opponents and fought to defeat the measure.
Also last year, Herrod fought to keep the legislature from overturning a near-total abortion ban that was written in 1864, which she called 'the most protective pro-life law in the country.' Lawmakers ultimately repealed that Civil War-era law.
She and the Center for Arizona Policy also backed an Alabama Supreme Court ruling that effectively made in vitro fertilization illegal in that state.
On Jan. 16, Herrod quietly announced her retirement through a post on the Center for Arizona Policy website. In a letter to supporters, she wrote that she decided in 2022 that her time as president was coming to an end.
'Serving God through His work at Center for Arizona Policy has been a blessing for me,' she wrote. 'I have had the joy of knowing I was called to this work and this ministry. You all have been an encouragement and blessing. Your prayers mean more to me than I can say.'
In the same missive, Herrod introduced her successor, Peter Gentala, who served as an attorney for the CAP from 2004 to 2008. That year, he was hired as a GOP caucus attorney for the Arizona House of Representatives, and he later worked for Childhelp. Gentala officially took over as the organization's president on Feb. 10.
'I consider it a high honor and blessing for Peter to follow me,' Herrod wrote. 'I can't think of anyone more qualified and suited to lead CAP forward. Peter loves the Lord and lives out a biblically-formed worldview.'
In an adjoining statement, Greg Fraley, chairman of CAP's board of directors, wrote that throughout his career Gentala has focused on the issues that matter most to the Center for Arizona Policy.
Prior to his previous stint with CAP, Gentala worked for the Alliance Defending Freedom, a Scottsdale-based advocacy group that files lawsuits aimed at advancing far-right policy goals..
'I am so happy and honored to follow Cathi Herrod as CAP's next president,' Gentala wrote in a statement. 'I admire Cathi — and I know that admiration is shared throughout our great state. Through the years, she has been a dynamic leader, a redoubtable advocate for the truth, and a compassionate reflection of God's love.'
In addition to its advocacy for restrictions on abortion, the Center for Arizona Policy supported Arizona's universal expansion of state-funded vouchers to pay for private school tuition, as well as a litany of anti-LGBTQ policies and legislation.
The organization's 'statement of faith' posted on its website says that its members believe marriage 'has only one meaning; the uniting of one man and one woman in a single, exclusive union, as delineated in Scripture' and that sex should only occur in a marriage between a man and a woman.
The statement goes on to say that 'the rejection of one's biological sex and adoption of a transgender self-conception is inconsistent with God's holy purposes in creation and a departure from Christian faithfulness and witness.'
In Gentala's statement, he praised CAP's work over the past 30 years, saying that it had contributed to more than 200 pieces of legislation that he said affirmed the value of every human life, the importance of families as the foundation of society and freedom to practice religion.
'As my season of leadership begins, please know that my overarching ambition for this organization is to be ready and willing to answer the call of the Lord, to entrust all results in His hands, and to give Him the Glory every step of the way,' Gentala wrote.
Herrod did not respond to a request for comment.
SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles

USA Today
an hour ago
- USA Today
Congress introduces bill addressing national guidelines for college sports
Congress introduces bill addressing national guidelines for college sports With the settlement of three athlete-compensation antitrust cases against the NCAA and the Power Five conferences having received final approval from a federal district judge on June 6, members of the U.S. House of Representatives have moved into action with new legislative proposals regarding national rules for college sports. On Wednesday, June 10, Reps. Lisa McClain, R-Mich., and Janelle Bynum, D-Ore., introduced a bill that comes shortly after Reps. Gus Bilirakis, R-Fla., and Brett Guthrie, R-Ky., circulated a discussion draft of a bill that would largely put into federal law the terms and new rules-making structure of the settlement. The discussion draft is set to be the centerpiece of a hearing June 11 by a subcommittee of the House Energy and Commerce Committee. Bilirakis, who has been involved in previous college-sports bill efforts, chairs the subcommittee. Guthrie chairs the full committee. The bill – in addition to being a bi-partisan presentation – continues recent work related to college sports from McClain, who is the current House Republican Conference chair. That makes her the GOP's No. 4-ranking member in the House. In April, McClain introduced a bill that would prevent college athletes from being employees of their schools, conferences or an athletic association. The discussion draft – as posted on Congress' general resource site, - includes language that specifically would allow the NCAA, and potentially the new Collegiate Sports Commission, to make rules in areas that have come into legal dispute in recent years and in areas that the NCAA wants to shield from legal dispute. The discussion draft, first reported on by The Washington Post, also includes language that would require most Division I schools to provide a series of benefits for athletes that are currently called for under NCAA and some conferences' rules but do not have the force of federal law. In addition, the discussion draft includes a 'placeholder' section for language that likely would be connected to providing antitrust or other legal protection for various provisions. According the discussion draft, an 'interstate collegiate athletic association' would be able to 'establish and enforce rules relating to … the manner in which … student athletes may be recruited' to play sports; 'the transfer of a student athlete between institutions'; and 'the number of seasons or length of time for which a student athlete is eligible to compete, academic standards, and code of conduct'. The NCAA's rules regarding when recruits can be offered money in exchange for the use of their name, image and likeness; athletes' ability to freely transfer; and the number of seasons in which they are eligible to compete all of have been – or currently are being – addressed in federal and state courts across the country. That has raised concerns for NCAA officials about the future of rules such as those concerning academic eligibility requirements The discussion draft also includes language that would require most Division I schools to provide a series of benefits for athletes that are currently called for under NCAA and some conferences' rules but do not have the force of law. These include medical coverage for athletically related injuries for at least two years after the conclusion of an athlete's career; guaranteed financial aid that would allow an athlete to complete an undergraduate degree; and 'an administrative structure that provides independent medical care and affirms the unchallengeable autonomous authority of primary athletics health care providers (team physicians and athletic trainers) to determine medical management and return-to-play decisions related to student athletes.'
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Congress introduces bill addressing national guidelines for college sports
With the settlement of three athlete-compensation antitrust cases against the NCAA and the Power Five conferences having received final approval from a federal district judge on June 6, members of the U.S. House of Representatives have moved into action with new legislative proposals regarding national rules for college sports. On Wednesday, June 10, Reps. Lisa McClain, R-Mich., and Janelle Bynum, D-Ore., introduced a bill that comes shortly after Reps. Gus Bilirakis, R-Fla., and Brett Guthrie, R-Ky., circulated a discussion draft of a bill that would largely put into federal law the terms and new rules-making structure of the settlement. Advertisement The discussion draft is set to be the centerpiece of a hearing June 11 by a subcommittee of the House Energy and Commerce Committee. Bilirakis, who has been involved in previous college-sports bill efforts, chairs the subcommittee. Guthrie chairs the full committee. The bill – in addition to being a bi-partisan presentation – continues recent work related to college sports from McClain, who is the current House Republican Conference chair. That makes her the GOP's No. 4-ranking member in the House. In April, McClain introduced a bill that would prevent college athletes from being employees of their schools, conferences or an athletic association. The discussion draft – as posted on Congress' general resource site, - includes language that specifically would allow the NCAA, and potentially the new Collegiate Sports Commission, to make rules in areas that have come into legal dispute in recent years and in areas that the NCAA wants to shield from legal dispute. The discussion draft, first reported on by The Washington Post, also includes language that would require most Division I schools to provide a series of benefits for athletes that are currently called for under NCAA and some conferences' rules but do not have the force of federal law. Advertisement In addition, the discussion draft includes a 'placeholder' section for language that likely would be connected to providing antitrust or other legal protection for various provisions. According the discussion draft, an 'interstate collegiate athletic association' would be able to 'establish and enforce rules relating to … the manner in which … student athletes may be recruited' to play sports; 'the transfer of a student athlete between institutions'; and 'the number of seasons or length of time for which a student athlete is eligible to compete, academic standards, and code of conduct'. The NCAA's rules regarding when recruits can be offered money in exchange for the use of their name, image and likeness; athletes' ability to freely transfer; and the number of seasons in which they are eligible to compete all of have been – or currently are being – addressed in federal and state courts across the country. That has raised concerns for NCAA officials about the future of rules such as those concerning academic eligibility requirements The discussion draft also includes language that would require most Division I schools to provide a series of benefits for athletes that are currently called for under NCAA and some conferences' rules but do not have the force of law. Advertisement These include medical coverage for athletically related injuries for at least two years after the conclusion of an athlete's career; guaranteed financial aid that would allow an athlete to complete an undergraduate degree; and 'an administrative structure that provides independent medical care and affirms the unchallengeable autonomous authority of primary athletics health care providers (team physicians and athletic trainers) to determine medical management and return-to-play decisions related to student athletes.' This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Congress introduces college sports bill proposing national rules


Miami Herald
an hour ago
- Miami Herald
China and US holding second day of trade talks in London
The U.S. and China resumed talks into a second day in London, with financial markets on edge as the world's largest economies try to agree to allow exports of key tech and industrial goods and avoid escalating their trade war. The teams led by U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng were reconvening Tuesday just after 10:40 a.m. at Lancaster House. The Georgian-era mansion near Buckingham Palace has hosted major addresses by U.K. prime ministers, speeches by central bank governors and parties for Britain's royal family. Speaking to reporters as officials arrived, U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said talks are going well and are expected to go all day Tuesday. President Donald Trump told reporters at the White House on Monday that 'we are doing well with China. China's not easy,' adding that he was 'only getting good reports' from the nearly seven-hour session Monday. Bessent said after day one they had a 'good meeting.' Bond and currency markets are closely monitoring the talks for clues on the potential economic impact. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index, which has fallen sharply this year as trade tensions undermine confidence in U.S. assets, is around its lowest levels since 2023. The key issue this week is re-establishing terms of an agreement reached in Geneva last month, in which the U.S. understood that China would allow more rare earth shipments to reach American customers. The Trump administration accused Beijing of moving too slowly, which threatened shortages in domestic manufacturing sectors. In return, the Trump administration is prepared to remove a recent spate of measures targeting chip design software, jet engine parts, chemicals and nuclear materials, people familiar with the matter said. Many of those actions were taken in the past few weeks as tensions flared between the U.S. and China. 'Win by China' 'A U.S. decision to rollback some portion of the technology controls would very much be viewed as a win by China,' said Dexter Roberts, nonresident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council's Global China Hub. 'If we think back to the last administration, the possibility of the U.S. unwinding any controls was pretty much unthinkable.' A month ago Beijing and Washington agreed to a 90-day truce through mid-August in their crippling tariffs to allow time to resolve many of their trade disagreements - from tariffs to export controls. At the same time, Trump's trade team is scrambling to secure bilateral deals with India, Japan, South Korea and several other countries that are racing to do so before July 9, when the U.S. president's so-called reciprocal tariffs rise from the current 10% baseline to much higher levels customized for each trading partner. Meanwhile, Chinese President Xi Jinping on Tuesday held his first phone conversation with South Korea's newly elected President Lee Jae-myung and called for cooperation to safeguard multilateralism and free trade. 'We should strengthen bilateral cooperation and multilateral coordination, jointly safeguard multilateralism and free trade, and ensure the stability and smoothness of global and regional industrial chains and supply chains,' Xi said, according to the CCTV report. With assistance from Colum Murphy and Annmarie Hordern. Copyright (C) 2025, Tribune Content Agency, LLC. Portions copyrighted by the respective providers.