Controversial abortion law could cost Donald Trump the swing state of Arizona

• Lily Sophie Maigret

  Editorial in Washington

Since the Supreme Court overturned nationwide abortion rights in the United States almost two years ago, states have been able to decide for themselves whether or not they want to ban abortions. This led to stricter abortion laws in many states. Now, a political battle has erupted in Arizona to restore a 160-year-old anti-abortion law dating back to the American Civil War, when women did not have the right to vote..

Even before the nation’s highest court’s ruling, abortion was more or less outlawed in the states, with exceptions for incest and rape. In Arizona, the state Supreme Court earlier this month reinstated a law from 1864. If the law goes into effect soon, it means abortions will only be allowed if the woman’s life can be saved. The offense can lead to a prison sentence of up to five years.

It would end the 2022 abortion law that allowed abortions in Arizona up to the 15th week of pregnancy. But if it was up to the Democrats, it wouldn’t have come to this. After the state court ruling, they immediately filed a motion to remove the 1864 ban from the law.

Republicans did not want to vote on the proposal and adjourned the meeting. Democrats shouted after them as they left the chamber: “You’ve got blood on your hands!” A second attempt earlier this week also failed. The Democrats failed to get a single vote.

Still, Democratic Congresswoman Stephanie Stahl Hamilton, who introduced the proposal, remains confident: “We’re going to move forward.” She sees this issue as so urgent that she believes it deserves this commitment: “My daughter’s grandmother had more rights in 1940 than she does now in 2024.”

Dr. Barbara Zipkin works at an abortion clinic in Phoenix, Arizona. A small dog roams the clinic to comfort the women. There are also posters everywhere designed to reassure women. Zipkin is very angry about the Supreme Court’s decision: “Women are so scared that they are rushing to the clinic now because they are afraid that in two weeks they will have no other choice.”

And that’s not the only thing that upsets her: “The abortion ban has a huge impact on their lives, too important to be manipulated. And that is exactly what is happening now: we are a pawn in their political game. And that’s what disappoints her.” “It’s just wrong.”

Chelsea stands on a field in suburban Phoenix, pushing a swing. Her son is in the cradle. She already has two children, but now she cannot have a third. That’s why she had an abortion: “I was terrified. If I had waited any longer, it would have been impossible.”

She is a single mother and is already struggling to make ends meet. Combined with the mental health issues, she doesn’t think this is a good situation for the child. She deeply sympathizes with women facing similar situations: “There are many reasons why women have abortions, and denying that right is inhumane.”

The women receive support from an unexpected source. Former President Trump also thinks Arizona has gone too far with this anti-abortion law. And while he was always proud of the fact that he appointed conservative justices who struck down the nation’s right to abortion. But when a reporter asked him if he thought Arizona had gone too far, he said yes; He wants to find a solution.

This is an attempt by Trump to win the female vote. But according to Republican political strategist Barrett Marson, it may already be too late to change course: “Before, Trump’s chances of winning in Arizona were high, but I think because of the abortion issue, the victory may now go to Joe Biden, and that Trump sees this too, so he’s revised his position. This is a risky strategy because it could also cost him votes in his conservative base.

Since abortion rights were repealed at the national level, more than half of US states have imposed restrictions on abortion. In some states, people were allowed to vote on the issue, and women seemed to repeatedly choose to retain their right to self-determination, even in conservative states like Kansas and Kentucky.

That’s why abortion is perhaps the most important issue for Democrats, who promise to write abortion rights into law if Biden is re-elected. It was no coincidence that Vice President Kamala Harris headed to the state the day after the Arizona Supreme Court’s ruling to voice her distaste for the 1864 law, which also quickly responded with a television ad highlighting the implications of the abortion ban. Shows with text “Trump did this.