A political observer who dislikes John McCain’s choice of Sarah Palin as his vice presidential running mate has created an e-mail campaign that is spurring thousands of donors to give to Planned Parenthood Federation of America, the charity that supports women’s right to legal abortion.

The e-mail solicitation, now making its rounds on the Internet, urges people to make a gift to Planned Parenthood in Ms. Palin’s “honor”—as a way to register their objection to her political views, including her opposition to legalized abortion.

The e-mail includes a link to the charity’s Web site and instructions on how to make an honorary gift that will be acknowledged with a card sent from Planned Parenthood to the McCain-Palin campaign.

“Make a donation to Planned Parenthood in Sarah Palin’s name,” the solicitation reads. “A Planned Parenthood donation is tax-deductible, while a political donation isn’t.”

So far, more than 31,000 donors from all 50 states have responded to the message, contributing a total of $802,678. More than two-thirds of the donors are first-time donors to Planned Parenthood.

“The response to this viral e-mail has been phenomenal,” said Cecile Richards, Planned Parenthood’s president, in a statement.

The e-mail did not originate with Planned Parenthood, the statement said.