Arizona’s Civil War-era ban on nearly all abortions is officially repealed as of Saturday.The long-dormant law had no exceptions for rape and incest, only for the life of the mother.
Arizona’s Civil War-era ban on nearly all abortions is officially being repealed on Saturday.
The long-dormant 1864 law, which predated Arizona’s statehood, had no exceptions for rape and incest, only for the life of the mother.
The 160-year-old law went into effect after the repeal of Roe vs. Wade in 2022 but faced court challenges which prevented it from being enforced.
The ban was held up by the Arizona Supreme Court in April, throwing out an earlier lower-court decision that concluded doctors couldn’t be charged for performing abortions in the first 15 weeks of pregnancy.
But the decision sparked backlash in the battleground Grand Canyon State, with Democratic Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs calling on the state legislature to repeal the ban.
Republicans hold a narrow majority in both chambers, but House Democrats were then able to garner the support of three Republicans to pass the repeal legislation in April following two previous attempts, sending the measure to the Senate for consideration. Two GOP senators joined with Democrats a week later to grant final approval and then Hobbs signed the bill in May, declaring it was just the beginning of a fight to protect reproductive health care in Arizona.
