BOSTON – Republican candidate for U.S. Senate John Deaton held a press conference Tuesday, saying after hearing from potential voters, he wants to make his stance on women’s health issues clear.

Deaton said he is pro-choice and pro-women, but claims his opponent is pushing another message about him.

“She's out there characterizing like I support a ban on abortion. There couldn't be anything further from the truth,” Deaton said to a group of reporters. 

Speaking about his opponent, incumbent U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, Deaton said her campaign is promoting the idea that he is against women’s rights. 

He said he is so passionate about women’s rights, he would switch parties if a ban on abortion came to the Senate floor. 

“I would look at the leadership and say, 'You put that on the floor. I'll switch parties,'” he said of how he would stand up to Republicans in the Senate. “That's how committed I am. And I think it's time that we had someone like that, someone who is not just loyal to a party, an agenda or a person, someone who is loyal to Massachusetts' voters in this country.”

Deaton said he has voted for and donated to the campaigns of both Democrats and Republicans. But he said he is a proud Republican. 

A spokesperson from Warren’s campaign told Spectrum News 1 in a statement:

“Who runs the Senate will determine which bills and judicial nominees get votes and which don't, and Republican control is a risk that Massachusetts cannot afford to take. Senator Warren looks forward to debating her Republican opponent on this and other critical issues facing the Commonwealth two weeks from today.”

Both Warren and Deaton will debate twice before Election Day, once on Oct. 15 in Boston and again on Oct. 17 in Springfield. The details of the debates are still being worked out.