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Pennsylvania County Could Become First to Divest From Wells Fargo Over Abortion

Citing Wells Fargo’s donations to anti-abortion groups, Lehigh County wants to find a new bank for $145 million in assets.

Lehigh County in Pennsylvania began the process of divesting its assets from Wells Fargo Bank because of the bank’s donations to anti-abortion groups.

Lehigh County in Pennsylvania began the process of divesting its assets from Wells Fargo Bank because of the bank’s donations to anti-abortion groups.

Photographer: Victor J. Blue/Bloomberg
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Corrected

The tenth-largest county in Pennsylvania may become the first entity to divest its assets from Wells Fargo & Co. because of the bank’s support of politicians who oppose abortion rights. 

Lehigh County began the divestiture process last week. Withdrawing $145 million in taxpayer dollars from the bank is one way to hold big businesses accountable for their role in shaping the law, said Mark Pinsley, the county’s controller. Despite publicly stating that it would cover the cost of employees’ travel to get an abortion out of state after Roe v. Wade was overturned by the Supreme Court, Wells Fargo continues to donate to political groups that are anti-abortion, according to Pinsley.