Arizona GOP squashes second attempt to repeal Civil War era abortion ban

Republican state lawmakers in Arizona have defeated another attempt to repeal a Civil War era near-total ban on abortion on Wednesday, marking the second failed effort in two weeks.

The Arizona state Supreme Court ruled that the 1864 abortion policy was constitutional last week, but Democrats have attempted to legally repeal the law. Even some Republicans, including former President Donald Trump, have joined Democratic calls to repeal the 1864 ban. 

Democrats in the Republican-led House introduced a bill to repeal the law, and requested an immediate vote on the legislation. Arizona House rules require that the majority of the chamber agree to suspend the rules to hold the immediate vote, and that majority has to include House Speaker Ben Toma, according to NBC News.

Toma has been against repealing the ban, and the request to hold an immediate vote on the repeal failed. Democrats also moved to hold another vote on Wednesday, but the motion also failed to pass.



"The last thing we should be doing today is rushing a bill through the legislative process to repeal a law that has been enacted and affirmed by the legislature several times," Toma said after the first vote. "And I would ask everyone in this chamber to respect the fact that some of us believe that abortion is in fact the murder of children.”

The near-total ban outlaws abortion from the point of conception in most cases, but allows abortions up to 15-weeks of pregnancy if it's to save the life of the mother. Anyone who breaks this law by performing the abortion or helping a woman procure one could face anywhere from two to five years in prison.

 

State senators may also make their own attempt to advance a repeal of the strict ban, which does not include exceptions for rape and incest, during the senate’s next session on Wednesday afternoon. Republicans hold a two-seat majority in both chambers.