The Arizona Senate on Wednesday finalized repealing a near-total abortion ban that the state Supreme Court ruled in early April trumps a 15-week restriction that was implemented in 2022.
But that doesn’t mean the 1864 abortion ban won’t go into effect — or that it will be repealed quickly, even though legislation to do so has now passed both legislative chambers.
While the Senate approved House Bill 2677 on a 16-14 vote, with Republican Sens. Shawnna Bolick and T.J. Shope joining all of the chamber’s Democrats in support, a ministerial delay will stop the bill from being sent to Gov. Katie Hobbs for weeks. That’s because the House ended its work for the day before the Senate could vote on the bill, so the lower chamber hasn’t formally received the bill in order to transmit it to the governor. And that won’t happen until May 15, the next day the House is set to be in session.
After falling short for weeks, the House voted to repeal the 1864 on April 24.
Hobbs has called on legislators to repeal the Civil War-era ban and has said she will swiftly sign legislation to do so. But even when she does, the ban won’t end. Instead, that will happen only 90 days after the legislature ends its annual session. And with little progress made on the state budget, it’s unclear when the session will end and that 90-day clock will start ticking.
In the meantime, Attorney General Kris Mayes is asking the state Supreme Court to pause its ruling implementing the 1864 law so her office can craft an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court on the grounds that the state justices improperly are injecting themselves into a different federal case about an Arizona abortion law.
Bolick, who is a staunch anti-abortion advocate, defended her vote by explaining her history with a miscarriage — her unviable pregnancy was ended with a D&C, the surgical procedure used in about half of abortions in Arizona — and later successful pregnancies.
“Many women don’t have textbook pregnancies,” she said, explaining that she is unsure if her D&C procedure would have been allowed under the 1864 ban because it was needed for her health, even though her life was not yet in immediate danger.
Republicans incensed over repeal
Other Republicans were incensed. Sen. Jake Hoffman, who heads up the far-right Arizona Freedom Caucus, said the near-total abortion ban is “one of the best, strongest, pro-life measures in the country.” He said that it was “representative of and reflective of our founding fathers’ intent.”
That two Republicans crossed party lines to end that ban, Hoffman said, is unconscionable.
“It is disgusting that this is the state of the Republican Party today,” he said.
Sen. Anthony Kern, R-Glendale, said it was “insanity” that Bolick and Shope claim to be pro-life, but still supported allowing abortions in Arizona.
“The craziest thing I’ve seen and heard is, ‘I’m pro-life, yet I’m going to vote to repeal the abortion ban.’ It’s insanity to me,” he said, adding abortion is part of a plot to “destroy this country.”
David Gowan, a Republican from Sierra Vista, compared Wednesday’s vote to the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
“Today feels like 9/11,” he said.
At stake was literally life and death for Arizonans, said Sen. David Farnsworth, R-Mesa.
“Have we become so evil?” he said. “God is watching.”
This story was first published by Arizona Mirror, which is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity.
