A 19th century abortion law in the battleground state of Arizona was officially repealed on Saturday.
The 1864 law, passed before Arizona became a state, was repealed Saturday as the Legislature recessed for the 90th day of the year. The Civil War-era law banned nearly all abortions except to save the mother's life.
The fight over abortion access in the state began earlier this year, when the Arizona Supreme Court upheld an 1864 law in early April, making abortion almost entirely illegal in the Grand Canyon State. Then, in early May, Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs (Democrat) signed a bill repealing the state's Civil War-era ban, just one day after it passed the Republican-controlled state senate.
“I am proud to sign this bill and provide a moment of relief to Arizonans, but there is still work to be done,” Gov. Hobbs said at the time. “I know how much confusion and chaos can be created when multiple bans are issued at different times. I know how terrible this ban can be, and I intend to do everything in my power to prevent it from going into effect.”
If the repeal goes ahead, the state would revert to a ban on abortions after 15 weeks. The law has exceptions for the life of the mother, but no exceptions in cases of incest or rape.
Arizona voters can make abortion a fundamental right in the state constitution this November. The group spearheading the effort, Arizona Abortion Access Advocates, has gathered enough signatures to get the measure on the ballot. Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes (Democrat) said in mid-August that the measure has nearly 200,000 more signatures than necessary and will be placed on the ballot as Proposition 139.
