Here is the guest list for the State of the Union address

Notable guests will be in attendance Thursday for President Biden’s State of the Union address.

Lawmakers and officials have been rolling out their guest lists for the annual speech, which is an opportunity for Biden to outline his policy priorities for the upcoming year. By inviting guests with specific backgrounds or stories, lawmakers will attempt to make their points on what issues are most important to them for the upcoming year.

Biden will speak to both chambers of Congress at 9 p.m. EST Thursday.

Here are some of the people who will be in attendance that night.

Women who fled states for abortion services

At least two women who fled their states to receive abortion services have been invited as State of the Union guests as Biden pushes reproductive health care a significant campaign issue.

First lady Jill Biden invited Kate Cox as one of her guests. Cox sued for the right to terminate a nonviable pregnancy in Texas and later left the state to receive abortion care. Cox, a Dallas-area resident, was more than 10 weeks pregnant with a fetus that was diagnosed with a chromosomal anomaly that leads to miscarriage, stillbirth or death of the infant.

Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) invited Kayla Smith, a central Washington resident, as one of her guests. According to Murray’s office, Smith learned at 19-weeks pregnant that the fetus “had serious and fatal fetal anomalies” while living in Idaho in 2022.

Under Idaho’s ban, she could not receive an abortion as the law only allows exceptions to prevent the death of the mother, despite Smith’s concerns for her own health. She then traveled to Seattle to receive abortion care and has since moved her family to the state of Washington.

“We felt strongly about raising our girls in a state where they would have bodily autonomy. I am honored to have been given the opportunity to sit alongside Senator Murray at the State of the Union address and continue to share not only my story, but the story of so many other women who have unfortunately been forced to flee their home state for abortion care,” Smith said.

Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich’s parents

The parents of detained Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich will be attending as Speaker Mike Johnson’s (R-La.) guests on Thursday.

Johnson said he is “honored” to host the parents, saying the invitation highlights Russia’s “unjust” detention of Gershkovich. He has been held by Russia since last March on espionage charges, which he, his family and the Biden administration have all denied. The U.S. considers him wrongfully detained.

“By hosting Evan’s parents, Congress will shine a spotlight on the unjust detention of their son. The United States must always stand for freedom of the press around the world, especially in places like Russia, where it is under assault,” Johnson said Tuesday. “The Administration must bring Evan home.”

First person born via in-vitro fertilization

Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) will bring Elizabeth Carr — the first person to be born via in-vitro fertilization in the U.S. — as his State of the Union guest.

“I am honored and humbled to be able to attend the State of the Union address with Senator Kaine as a representative of how far IVF technology has come in this country—and not just as the first IVF baby in this country, but also as someone who understands deeply just how many people in-vitro has helped build the family of their dreams,” Carr, born in 1981, said in a statement.

This comes after the Alabama Supreme Court ruled last month that frozen embryos are people and therefore subject to wrongful death of a minor legislation should something happen to them. This has since prompted multiple in vitro fertilization (IVF) clinics to shut down operations.

Families of the hostages being held in Gaza

Seventeen relatives of American hostages who were taken by militant group Hamas into Gaza last year will be attending as guests of lawmakers.

The Families of the American Hostages in Gaza coalition announced that many of the families will be in attendance as guests of members of Congress, including Johnson, Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and many others.

Johnson will be bringing Orna and Daniel Neutra, the mother and brother of Omer Neutra, as two of his guests. Jeffries will be bringing Andrea Weinstein, who is the sister of Judy Weinstein Haggai and Gad Haggai. The family of Weinstein Haggai announced in December she was killed by Hamas after being taken by the militant group and her husband, Gad Haggai, is believed to have been killed by Hamas on Oct. 7.

An advocate for radiation victims

Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) will be bringing Dawn Chapman, an advocate for victims of radiation. He described her as “a tireless advocate for radiation victims in MO & around the country” in his post on X, formerly Twitter.

Hawley has pushed for legislation to compensate victims of radioactive waste in his state and throughout the country. He said Monday the Senate will vote this week on a standalone measure to expand and reauthorize the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act (RECA).

Yulia Navalnaya, widow of late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny

Yulia Navalnaya, the widow of the late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, was invited to the State of the Union but is unable to attend, according to the White House.

Biden had met Navalnaya and her daughter, Dasha, in San Francisco last month shortly after death of Navalny. Russian officials announced Navalny’s death Feb. 16, explaining that Putin’s imprisoned top rival felt unwell after a walk and lost consciousness.

In the weeks since his death, his widow has vowed to keep up Navalny’s work. His funeral was held last week.

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