Ex-US Rep. Todd Akin, sunk by ‘legitimate rape’ remark, dies

By JOHN HANNA and JIM SALTER
Associated Press

Former conservative Republican U.S. Rep. Todd Akin of Missouri has died. Akin’s son Perry says in a statement that his father died late Sunday at age 74 from cancer. Akin’s comment in 2012 that women’s bodies have a way of avoiding pregnancies in cases of “legitimate rape” sunk his bid for the U.S. Senate that year and became a cautionary tale for other GOP candidates. He represented a Republican-leaning eastern Missouri district that included St. Louis-area suburbs for 12 years before running for the Senate. His career was overshadowed by the outrage from the post-primary comment in a television interview after he was asked whether he would support allowing abortions in cases of rape.