Arizona House passes bill to repeal Civil War-era abortion ban

[Valin]

The Washington Examiner

Gabrielle M. Etzel
April 24, 2024

Arizona state lawmakers in the House on Wednesday passed a bill that would repeal the Civil War-era abortion ban that was upheld by the state’s Supreme Court earlier this month.

Three state Republicans joined the 29 Democratic representatives in approving the bill. Wednesday’s vote makes the body’s third attempt in three weeks to take steps at repealing the 1864 statute banning abortion except in the instances of “immediate” life-threatening conditions for the mother.

The 160-year-old law, which predated Arizona’s statehood, was upheld by the state Supreme Court on a legal technicality involving the state’s 15-week abortion ban that was passed following the unprecedented leak of the drafted Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision in May 2022.

The slim Republican majorities in the state House and Senate have held firm for several weeks, attempting to block repeal efforts for the abortion ban. Last week, state Senate Democrats, along with two Republicans, voted in favor of a motion to introduce a bill that would repeal the 1864 law.

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Regardless of whether the near-total abortion ban is repealed by the state government, the debacle may have significant implications for the impending ballot measure to secure abortion as a “fundamental right” in the Arizona Constitution.

Abortion rights advocates in the state say they have gathered enough signatures for an abortion rights amendment that would protect abortion access up until fetal viability. Conditions for viability in medical practice often depend on patient conditions, but experts agree that a fetus is likely to survive outside of the womb at between 20 and 24 weeks of pregnancy.