Arizona House votes to repeal controversial 1864 abortion ban, with help of 3 Republicans

Three Republicans on Wednesday joined Democrats in the Arizona House to vote to repeal the state's controversial 1864 ban on nearly all abortions, which was revived by a court ruling earlier this month and which only includes exceptions to save the life of the pregnant woman.The final vote was 32-28.The repeal bill, pushed by Democrats, heads to the state Senate where it could be taken up next week.The state Senate on Wednesday separately conducted a second read of its own abortion ban repeal bill, without objection, setting up a parallel vote -- though that is likely moot now because the House bill has been approved.Two Republican senators have already said they will support the repeal effort, signaling the House bill should pass that chamber and then head to Gov.Katie Hobbs' desk to be signed into law.The repeal of the ban would then take effect 90 days after the end of the legislative session, which must be before June 30."This is a stain on history that this ban even exists -- from a time when the age of consent was 10, from a time when women didn't have the right to vote," Arizona state Sen.

Eva Burch, a Democrat, told ABC News' Elizabeth Schulze amid an earlier, failed effort to approve the repeal bill in the state House.Many Republicans sharply objected on Wednesday to the push to undo the Civil War-era ban that has roiled the politics of the state after the Arizona Supreme Court ruled that it is enforceable.Leading conservatives like Trump, former Arizona Gov.Doug Ducey and Senate candidate Kari Lake have touted their general support for abortion restrictions but said the 1864 ban goes too far.People protest after Arizona's Supreme Court revived a law dating to 1864 that bans abortion in virtually all instances, in Peoria, AZ, April 14, 2024.Caitlin O'Hara/Reuters"This total ban on abortion that the Arizona Supreme Court has ruled on is out of line with where the people of this state are," Lake said in a video statement on social media earlier this month.H...