We've got to keep Republicans out of power at all levels of government.
John,
As a member of the EMILYs List community, you know better than anyone that reproductive health care is being attacked and dismantled state by state.
It's not all bad news, though: thanks to the success of Democrats in last year's midterm elections, we were able to protect abortion access for tens of millions of Americans. But there's still a lot of work to do.
Here's a breakdown of where abortion laws currently stand across the country:
I want to highlight three very important states for you, John:
- In New Mexico state law, there are no explicit protections for abortion, but abortion is legal and likely to remain protected, thanks in large part to the victories and hard work of EMILYs List candidates in the state. Our endorsed women helped establish a pro-choice majority in the state Senate in 2020, and Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, who was reelected last year, recently signed a bill overriding local ordinances that limited abortion access in the state.
- Arizona has a pre-Roe v. Wade, total abortion ban on the books that was temporarily blocked by a state appeals court. But before the court's ruling, Gov. Katie Hobbs, who narrowly won the Arizona governor's race last year with EMILYs List's support, had planned to call a special session to repeal this Civil War-era ban — and she stands ready to veto any anti-choice legislation that comes out of the Republican-controlled state legislature (which, by the way, we're working to flip — and we only need two seats in each chamber to do it). In fact, Gov. Hobbs has already set a veto record for the state, vetoing 63 bills in her first 100 days.
- In North Carolina, Republicans were able to establish a veto-proof majority in the state House after a single state legislator switched parties. This allowed them to pass a 12-week abortion ban and override the Democratic governor's veto. The lesson here? State-level battles for abortion rights are tooth-and-nail, for good reason: a single candidate, a single victory, and a single vote could determine abortion access for tens of millions of people. And that's why we're not giving up on North Carolina, or any other state with these kinds of restrictions.
Each of these states shows us that the only way to prevent and reverse abortion bans is to keep anti-choice Republicans out of power at all levels of government. We know that when choice is on the ballot, choice wins — and that Democratic pro-choice women will always fight for our rights.
Are you ready to fight back? Donate now to help elect the next wave of women who can protect and restore abortion rights nationwide:
https://emilyslist.org/go/End-May-Strong
Thank you,
Sarah Curmi (she/her/hers)
Vice President of State & Local Campaigns, EMILYs List
|
