Richards was a major force in Texas and national politics. Like her mother, former governor Ann Richards, Cecile spent most of her life rallying for progressive causes. Richards was a labor organizer, a staffer to Representative Nancy Pelosi, and then president of Planned Parenthood from 2006 to 2018.

Ten days before the 2016 election, I was standing in a cinderblock room in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, with Cecile Richards and other leaders of prominent women’s groups, all of us out to make the case for Hillary Clinton’s historic run for President.

As we mourn the loss of activist, organizer, and former president of Planned Parenthood, Cecile Richards, I offer words of wisdom she shared with me in our interviews over the years.

Richards, the eldest daughter of Gov. Ann Richards, forged her own path as a tireless advocate for women across Texas and the United States.

Cecile Richards, longtime head of Planned Parenthood and advocate for Democratic values, died Monday at age 67. Richards followed in the footsteps of her mother, former Texas Gov. Ann Richards, as a champion of abortion rights.

Cecile Richards, a women’s rights crusader who served as president of Planned Parenthood as the nation approached a critical inflection point over reproductive freedom, has died, her family said Monday in a statement.

Cecile Richards died Monday after battling an aggressive form of brain cancer, her family said in a statement.

Cecile Richards, a national leader for women’s rights who led Planned Parenthood for 12 tumultuous years, has died.

Cecile Richards, former Planned Parenthood president and progressive activist, died Jan. 20 after a battle with glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer. She was 67.

Catch up on the political news of the past week in the latest At the Races newsletter, including on abortion politics and 2026 updates.

Care didn’t disappear in Texas when Planned Parenthood was defunded. It actually increased through the Health Texas Women program, expanding funding to far more medical resources. The program states: “The program provides women's health and family planning services at no cost to eligible, low-income Texas women.”