GOP-controlled Arizona House votes to repeal 1864 abortion ban. Measure now goes to Senate

The Arizona House on Wednesday narrowly voted to repeal a near-total abortion ban dating from 1864, capping three weeks of efforts that have galvanized national attention.

The 32-28 vote came after passionate speeches from most Republicans, who described abortion in graphic detail and as contrary to Republican values.

But their attempts to block the repeal failed when Republicans Matt Gress and Justin Wilmeth of Phoenix and Tim Dunn of Yuma joined with all 29 Democrats to pass House Bill 2677.

“Stop calling it archaic to ban abortions," said Rep. Barbara Parker, R-Mesa, referring to critics of the near-total abortion ban who constantly note it was enacted 160 years ago. "It's archaic to do abortions.”

Parker, like many of her fellow Republicans, called abortion murder because it does not respect the life of unborn children.

“I can hear their silent screams and with my voice, I vote no." Parker, R-Mesa, said.

Aside from the emotional comments, there was little reaction when the vote was finalized. Democrats and the three Republicans were silent as they cast their votes.

But anger bubbled over when Gress then motioned that the bill be sent to the Senate and have it returned without amendments so it could be immediately transmitted to Gov. Katie Hobbs for her action.

That motion failed, but it unleashed an immediate and angry response from Republicans who saw it as unnecessary and divisive.

Republican Speaker Pro Tem Travis Grantham said the motion "drives a knife" into the House chamber, which has endured three successive weeks of tense and dramatic debate over the law that the state Supreme Court upheld on April 9.

House Speaker Ben Toma immediately removed Gress, as well as Rep. Oscar De Los Santos, D-Phoenix, from the Appropriations Committee, a key panel that is pivotal to work on the state budget.

He also booted De Los Santos from the Rules Committee. Toma, R-Glendale, did not explain why, other than to say that was his decision. But his anger was palpable at what many Republicans saw as an unwelcome victory lap over a highly sensitive issue.

Democrats said the motion was in line with majority opinion to hasten the repeal of the 1864 law.

House Minority Leader Lupe Contreras called De Los Santos' punishment "bull----."

“We weren't trying to undercut Republicans. It was all about doing the people's work,” Contreras, D-Avondale, said.

Both Gress and Dunn released statements explaining their votes.

Dunn said the 1864 law was "not perfect" because "protecting women in life-threatening situations and accounting for cases of rape and incest were not considered at the time of its passing."

A legislative veteran, Dunn described himself as "deeply pro-life," but said if the 1864 law was allowed to stand, he was convinced more lives would be lost. It also would have the effect of propelling more votes for a citizen initiative that would broaden abortion rights because that would be a more palatable option than a near-total ban. Dunn said he opposed the intiative.

Wilmeth late Wednesday said he had nothing more to say beyond his agreement with Dunn's statement.

"I echo what Rep. Dunn said in his statement and my rationale for my vote was the same," he wrote in a text message to The Arizona Republic.

Gress, who made the first motion Wednesday to bring up the vote, called the Civil War-era law "unworkable and out of line with the values of Arizonans."

Like Dunn, he said he is pro-life. He urged the state Senate to act quickly.

Next up: The Senate

The vote turns attention to the state Senate, which is poised to take up the matter next Wednesday, if there is agreement to bring it up for a vote. Last week, with little fanfare, the Senate started work on Senate Bill 1734, which is identical to the measure the House approved.

What's in the Howell Code? What you need to know about the history of Arizona's abortion ban

There might be another impetus for quick work on a repeal: Lawyers for the doctor whose lawsuit successfully reinstated the 1864 law contend the law is enforceable as of this week. Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes, as well as GOP leaders in the Legislature, argue that won't happen until June 8, citing an agreement reached in a separate court decision. Mayes has vowed to not enforce the law in any circumstance.

Toma called on Hobbs to rescind her executive order that bars county attorneys from enforcing Arizona abortion law, but said he doubted she would do so.

In the remote possibility of such an action, there theoretically could be enforcement of the 1864 law, since the repeal is not yet final, pending Senate action. And even then, if it passes the Senate, it won't take effect from 90 days from the end of the legislative session. That date is far from clear.

Relief, disappointment on the vote

Reaction was widespread and broke along ideological lines.

The Alliance Defending Freedom, which successfully defended the 1864 law before the state Supreme Court, expressed disappointment in a statement.

"Life is a human right, and it always will be," said senior counsel Jake Warner. "This doesn’t cease to be true because of a vote. We will continue to do everything we can to protect life and advocate for real support and real healthcare for women and families in Arizona and across the country."

Likewise, Cathi Herrod, president of the anti-abortion Center for Arizona Policy, was dismayed at the vote.

“I weep and I grieve for the lives of unborn children that are lost to abortion and for the lives of women that will be harmed by abortion,” Herrod said. She was a key advocate for ensuring that the 1864 law would take effect if the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the Roe v. Wade decision, which it did in June 2022.

Chris Love, spokesperson for Arizona for Abortion Access initiative, called the House's vote "too little, too late." That's because the House didn't muster enough votes to pass the repeal on an emergency basis. If that were the case, it would allow the repeal to take effect as soon as Hobbs would sign it.

Instead, the 1864 law is set to have the force of law on June 8, well before HB 2677 is expected to take effect.

Initiative backers said they'll press on with their efforts to get the measure on the Nov. 5 ballot and to convince Arizona voters why it's needed.

“One thing remains clear ― anti-abortion politicians and architects of a scam to confuse voters cannot be trusted to give Arizonans the freedom to make their own deeply personal decisions about abortion," said Cheryl Bruce, campaign manager for Arizona for Abortion Access.

Attorney General Mayes said in a statement that she was glad "sanity prevailed at the House" and she urged the Senate to act quickly.

"That 160-year-old law that criminalizes doctors and nurses for caring for their patients and endangers the lives and health of women across our state has no place in the 21^st century," Mayes said.

The fight isn't over

Republicans are still working on a possible referral, or referrals, that could put a competing abortion measure on the November ballot. They are looking for ways to blunt the impact of the initiative drive that would allow abortions until viability, usually 22 or 24 weeks of pregnancy, with exceptions in some circumstances.

Earlier Wednesday, the House Rules Committee approved the late introduction of up to three concurrent resolutions that could go to the ballot. There were no details on what the measures might propose, but the action queues the measures up for House action next month. The sponsors would be one or all of the four Republicans in House leadership: Toma, Grantham, Majority Leader Leo Biasiucci and Majority Whip Teresa Martinez.

A ballot referral requires a simple majority of each chamber to move to the Nov. 5 ballot. Given the narrow margins in the Legislature, that means all 31 House Republicans would have to agree, assuming Democrats would oppose anything that would compete with the Arizona for Abortion Access initiative.

Republic reporter Ray Stern contributed to this article.

Reach the reporter at maryjo.pitzl@arizonarepublic.com or at 602-228-7566 and follow her on Threads as well as on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, @maryjpitzl.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Arizona abortion ban: House approves 1864 law repeal