NARAL Pro-Choice America, a leading pro-choice advocacy group, on Thursday will endorse Ed Markey's Massachusetts Senate bid in the primary special election to fill John Kerry's Senate seat, TPM has learned.

Rep. Markey, a liberal Democrat, is facing off in the April 30 Democratic primary against his more conservative colleague Rep. Stephen Lynch, a pro-life Democrat.

“Rep. Markey is the only candidate in this race with a steadfast commitment to protecting reproductive freedom and privacy,” Ilyse Hogue, president of NARAL, said in a press release to be sent out Thursday. “Markey shares the widely-held belief that women are capable of making their own health-care decisions without interference from politicians… Ed Markey is the only candidate in this race who women can trust to defend their reproductive rights and we proudly support his campaign. We will do all we can to make sure that our Massachusetts members know he is the reliable ally they should support on April 30.”