Arizona GOP blocks attempt to repeal 1864 abortion ban: 'It's a very complicated topic'

Arizona Republicans voted to block an attempt to repeal the not-so-new 1864 abortion law, which was recently reinstated by the state Supreme Court and bans the practice in all cases, with the only possible exception being to save the life of the mother "when necessary." GOP lawmakers ignored requests from Donald Trump and Kari Lake, who had opposed the repeal.

Last April 9, justices on the state's highest court ruled 4-2 in favor of upholding an 1864 law, legislation that vacated the state's 15-week ban, enacted in 2022, months before the ruling that would overturn Roe Vs. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey.

"I signed the 15-week law as Governor because it is thoughtful conservative policy, and an approach to this very sensitive issue that Arizonans can actually agree on. The ruling today is not the outcome I would have preferred, and I call on our elected leaders to heed the will of the people and address this issue with a policy that is workable and reflective of our electorate," Doug Ducey, the former Republican governor who enacted the 2022 ban, said about the ruling.

Many prominent Republicans joined him, including Congressmen David Schweikert and Juan Ciscomani, who joined Lake and Trump.

"Abortion is a very complicated issue."

Democrats in the state House of Representatives introduced a motion on Wednesday to repeal the 1864 law. Still, the initiative failed to make it to the floor and failed on the procedural vote, which functions as a filter for the full House, in this case, the House, to address the issue.

The final vote ended 30-30, so the appeal was rejected. Only one Republican, state Rep. Matt Gress, crossed party lines to vote to repeal the bill.

"The last thing we should be doing today is rushing a bill through the legislative process to repeal a law that has been enacted and we affirmed by the Legislature several times," said Republican Ben Toma, House speaker.

"Abortion is a very complicated topic. It is ethically morally complex. I understand that we have deeply held beliefs. And I would ask everyone in this chamber to respect the fact that some of us who believe that abortion is in fact the murder of children," he added.

Toma is currently running for the congressional House of Representatives, particularly to fill the seat being vacated by Debbie Lesko in the 8th Congressional District. If there is one thing he will not lack, it is competition, as Blake Masters (candidate for senator in 2022) and Abraham Hamadeh (candidate for attorney general in 2022) are already in the race for the Republican nomination.

Donald Trump has already officially endorsed Hamadeh, whom he described as "strong on the border, the military/veterans, cutting taxes, electoral integrity and protecting our great Second Amendment." "He knows that if the flame of freedom is extinguished, it may never come back," he added.