The third time’s the charm: After two previous failed attempts, the Arizona House finally passed a bill Wednesday to repeal a near-total abortion ban from 1864 that the state Supreme Court revived this month.
The bill narrowly passed the House on its third try, with three Republicans joining their Democratic colleagues to vote for repeal.
Arizona Democrats have been pushing for legislation to repeal the Civil War-era ban since the state Supreme Court ruled April 9 that it was enforceable. The ruling has been deeply unpopular nationally — even prominent Republicans like Donald Trump have criticized it as too extreme — and it has highlighted the deep divergence in views over abortion between conservatives lawmakers and voters, especially in battleground states like Arizona.
Still, Republicans in the state House refused to allow the bill to pass on the first two votes — until Wednesday.
During debate, some Republicans said they would not be swayed from their opposition to the repeal, despite voter backlash. “We’re willing to kill infants in order to win an election,” GOP state Rep.Alexander Kolodin said, mischaracterizing fetuses as infants. Arizona’s previous 15-week ban would go back into effect if the 1864 ban is repealed.
The repeal bill now heads to the state Senate, where Republicans also hold a slim majority. Democrats need at least two GOP senators to vote with them to pass it. The Washington Post, citing unnamed legislative staffers, reports that the earliest the Senate could vote on the House measures is May 1, although it has been advancing a repeal of its own. The near-total ban is not set to go into effect until June 8 at the earliest.
Gov. Katie Hobbs, a Democrat, has said she would sign the repeal bill if it lands on her desk. In a statement , she praised House Democrats and encouraged the Senate to pass it. She added, “I encourage every Arizonan to make their voice heard at the ballot box this November as Arizonans decide on enshrining reproductive freedoms in our state’s constitution.” Abortion-rights advocates are also expected to put a proposal for a constitutional amendment to secure abortion rights on the November ballot.
Arizona House lawmakers vote to repeal 1864 abortion ban
(Reuters) – Lawmakers in Arizona’s House of Representatives on Wednesday voted to repeal an 1864 ban on abortion that may go into effect next month.
In a 32-28 vote, lawmakers decided that the old abortion ban should be repealed. The Arizona state Senate must now also vote to repeal the bill before the 160-year-old ban is knocked down.
“The decision to get an abortion, or seek any type of reproductive healthcare, belongs in the hands of patients, their families and their providers, not politicians,” Democratic Representative Oscar De Los Santos told reporters before Wednesday’s session began.
Arizona’s fight over the Civil War-era abortion ban is the latest flashpoint on women’s reproductive rights in the United States since the U.S. Supreme Court ended the constitutional right to abortion in 2022, leaving it up to states to decide the issue. Conservative-led states quickly invoked strict bans on abortion within their borders.
The old law was revived by a state Supreme Court ruling on April 9, and unless the legislature intervenes, it could take effect within 60 days of that ruling.
Even if Democrats in Arizona manage to repeal the 1864 abortion ban, restrictions on the procedure would still be in place. Arizona Republicans in 2022 passed a law that bans abortion after 15 weeks of pregnancy.
Democrats across the U.S., confident that public opinion is on their side in supporting abortion rights, have sought to elevate the issue, especially ahead of November’s presidential election. Arizona, sharply split between Democrats and Republicans, is a key battleground state in the presidential election.
Arizona Democrats have tried to repeal the 1864 abortion ban twice in recent weeks but were blocked by procedural means to even bring the measure up for a vote.
With or without repealing the 1864 law, Arizona Democrats are also attempting to place a ballot measure before voters in November that would restore abortion rights.
Democratic Governor Katie Hobbs has labeled the Republicans who are upholding the old abortion ban as “extremists” and has said she will sign a repeal of the ban if it passes the House and the Senate. (This story has been refiled to correct the day of the week to Wednesday in paragraphs 1 and 3)
