Earlier Friday, a war of words had erupted over White’s position on abortion, after a prominent Texas pro-life group usually aligned with Republicans blasted the Texas Democratic Party for pressuring White to “renounce his pro-life values” to run as a Democrat.
“(White’s) previously stated stance of being ‘deeply, personally’ pro-life and his position as an elder of a Houston church that is part of the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA) gave us hope that the Democratic Party would be open to a pro-life candidate,” said Joe Pojman, executive director of the Texas Alliance for Life.
“As an elder in a PCA church, Mr. White was tasked with upholding the Church’s teachings, which include opposing abortion in all forms. Unfortunately, it was not meant to be.”
The Houston Chronicle reported that White had resigned his position as an elder as a result of the controversy over his public pro-choice position as a candidate.
“For too long, the Democratic Party of Texas has abandoned Texans who believe in defending the sanctity of life,” Pojman said. “They have turned the abortion debate into a litmus test and excluded candidates who seek to bring a pro-life voice into the party, and thus have forced Mr. White to abandon his pro-life position.”
White rejected Pojman’s call to be pro-life.