House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D., Calif.) said Thursday that she supports pro-life congressman Dan Lipinski's (D., Ill.) reelection bid.
"Dan Lipinski. Do you support his re-election?" a reporter asked Pelosi as she left the podium at her weekly briefing. Pelosi, after apparently pausing to make sure she heard correctly, responded, "Yes. Yes I do."
Pelosi's support comes days after the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee announced that it would not endorse Lipinski, who is running for re-election in Illinois' 3rd congressional district. He is facing Marie Newman, a marketing consultant who is pro-choice.
The DCCC is aligning itself with Newman, who has received endorsements from abortion rights organizations like Emily's List.
Lipinski said that "Democrats have to know that they’re going to have the full support [of the DCCC] even if they’re not straight in the party line," and that the party will need candidates who are not straight in the party line if they want to win back a majority.
In January, Illinois House Democrats Jan Schakowsky and Luis Gutierrez endorsed Newman, along with Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand's (D., N.Y.) PAC.
Lipinski has been on progressive radars for years. He voted against the Affordable Care Act in 2010, to freeze funding for Planned Parenthood, and was one of six House Democrats to support a ban on abortions after 20 weeks in 2013.