May 2nd,2024
After 23 days of living in 1864, Democrats deliver repeal for Arizonans 

ARIZONA- After nearly a month since Arizona’s MAGA Republicans rolled the clocks back to 1864, banning abortions with no exceptions for rape or incest, they were caught lying about their long and detailed anti-abortion record, were fundraising in Kentucky on the successful passage of their draconian ban, were caught in their plan to sow misinformation and pull voters away from the abortion access ballot initiative, and repeatedly stalled passage of the repeal at all costs. Yesterday, House and Senate Democrats successfully passed a bill repealing the 1864 abortion ban. The bill, championed by Representative Stephanie Stahl-Hamilton, was signed into law by Governor Katie Hobbs today. 

“Arizonans are lucky to have Democratic elected officials who were steadfast in fighting to protect their rights” said Arizona Democratic Party Chairwoman Yolanda Bejarano. “But our work does not stop with this repeal. We need Democrats to win from the state legislature to the White House, so we can ensure reproductive rights are never put in jeopardy again. There is no doubt that Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans will try to push for a national ban again– and that’s exactly why we will do everything possible to beat them in November.”

ADLCC Co-Chair Priya Sundareshan added, “Arizona Democrats are the reason we were successful in this repeal , but we have to do everything possible to ensure this never happens again.Rather than repeal this ban on day one, Arizona Republicans did everything in their power to restrict abortion access, confuse voters, and stall the repeal process. Flipping the legislature would give Democrats the power to codify abortion access and stop Republicans from interfering in our medical decisions ever again.” 

Even with the successful repeal, Arizonans will begin living under the 1864 abortion ban effective June 27– just three days after the 2-year anniversary of the Dobbs decision. The 1864 ban will stand until 90 days after the close of session, forcing Arizonans to drive an average of 251 miles for abortion care beginning in late June. 

As a reminder, here’s Arizona’s MAGA Republicans long and detailed record of undermining reproductive rights: 

• Republicans accidentally leaked their plans to pull votes away from the abortion ballot initiative by sowing confusion among voters leading to them enacting another ban. 
• Rep. Matt Gress is one of the most pro-life members of the House, sponsoring House Bill 2427 that would have established fetal personhood in Arizona, opening the door for banning reproductive healthcare services such as IVF.
• When presented with legislation to repeal the ban, Rep. Matt Gress voted with the Republican majority so that the House entered recess and the discussion was shut down. 
• Rep. Matt Gress again voted with the Republican majority in adjourning session for the day without hearing discussion on the ban repeal. 
• When held accountable for his votes, Rep. Gress said, “I don’t remember voting aye ― my (GOP) colleagues would be surprised.”
• When held accountable for his votes, Rep. Gress called the attention to the video “unfair” and called the attempts to contradict his story a “partisan attack and a lie.”
• Rep. Gress finally admitted to lying for three whole days after the vote occurred and he could no longer deny video evidence.

• Rep. Shawnna Bolick joined every Senate Republican in urging voters to refuse to sign the abortion access initiative in Arizona, vowing to introduce anti-abortion legislation including banning abortion at the “moment of conception.”
• Senator T.J. Shope co-sponsored the bill to ban abortions at 15 weeks  that would have prosecuted doctors who performed abortions after 15 weeks.
• Senate Majority Leader Sonny Borrelli retorted that women should “hold aspirin between their knees,” suggesting that women wouldn’t need access to contraception if they kept a pill bottle between their legs to stop them from having sex.

• Kari Lake “solidified her support for Arizona’s total abortion ban and called on county sheriffs to enforce the law”, “[expressed] disappointment” that the ban isn’t being enforced, and “[downplayed] 1864 abortion law, [said] Arizonans can travel ‘3 hours’ for procedure.”
• Congressman David Schweikert co-sponsored the Life at Conception Act six times. The Life at Conception Act would ban all abortions and does not exclude IVF treatments in defining “person” as “each and every member of the species homo sapiens at all stages of life, including the moment of fertilization.” 
• Congressman Juan Ciscomani co-sponsored H.R. 7, legislation that prohibits using government subsidies, including tax credits, to purchase insurance plans that cover abortions. Women who are serving in the military, veterans or covered under Medicaid, as well as federal employees and those covered by the Indian Health Service, would not be able to use their credits to purchase insurance that covers abortions.
• Former Governor Doug Ducey pushed through a 15-week ban that was the basis of this court case going to the Arizona Supreme Court, and appointed all the far-right justices that made the ruling today.

Arizona Democrats are prepared to fight for abortion rights up and down the ticket. To learn more about key initiatives, how to vote or how to support Democrats this election cycle, please visit azdem.org

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