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Planned Parenthood President Cecile Richards is expected to step down after 12 years at the abortion rights and women’s health-care organization, with an announcement coming as soon as next week. “Cecile plans to discuss 2018 and the next steps for Planned Parenthood’s future at the upcoming board meeting,” the organization said in a statement. (Weigel, 1/24)

Richards navigated the group through the fallout from a series of activist videos in 2015 that purported to show Planned Parenthood officials discussing sales of fetal tissue, which sparked congressional and state probes into the organization. No investigation found any wrongdoing, but the Trump administration recently indicated it may be conducting its own review. Richards, daughter of the late Texas Gov. Ann Richards, has served as president of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America and Planned Parenthood Action Fund, the group's political arm, since 2006. (Rayasam, 1/24)

As president, Richards has played a large role in upping the scale of Planned Parenthood’s fundraising efforts and political lobbying. Her work at the helm of the organization has often led her back to her home state, where she has fought legal battles with anti-abortion Republican state leaders who sought to defund the organization's women's health clinics. In 2011, she visited the Texas Capitol to decry “legislative assaults” against Planned Parenthood. She also came to Texas in 2016 to campaign for Hillary Clinton. (Platoff, 1/24)