Pritzker’s touting of Illinois’ abortion law is not without political risk in this election year
By GRACE KINNICUTT
Capitol News Illinois
(Fox Valley Magazine contributed to this article)
Gov. JB Pritzker called on Congress Wednesday to “be like Illinois” and codify abortion access, up to the moment of birth, into federal law.
Pritzker made those comments at a Fairview Heights abortion clinic, touting steps Illinois has taken to protect abortion services should a U.S. Supreme Court decision overturning the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision be finalized as precedent.
“It’s long past time for this nation to codify Roe into federal law,” Pritzker said. “Basic rights of women to control their own bodies are about to be stripped away.”
“Make no mistake. It is not Roe v. Wade codification,” said Manchin referring to the proposed bill. “It’s an expansion. It wipes 500 state laws off the books. It expands abortion.”
Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV)
The Women’s Health Protection Act that was before Congress Wednesday would have protected a women’s ability to determine whether to continue or end a pregnancy up until the moment of birth and prevent states from acting to remove or alter abortion protections in the future.
But the legislation did not pass the Senate, falling by a vote of 49-51 after Democratic West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin joined Republicans and voted no.
“Make no mistake. It is not Roe v. Wade codification,” said Manchin referring to the proposed bill. “It’s an expansion. It wipes 500 state laws off the books. It expands abortion.”
Pritzker’s touting of Illinois’ abortion law is not without political risk in this election year. Illinois, along with New York and California, has the most permissive abortion laws in the country, and they are among the most permissive in the world. The law signed by Pritzker in 2019 provides access to abortion up until the moment of birth, while that and a later law have effectively eliminated popular policies like informed consent and parental notification for minors.
Recent polling in the wake of the leak of a draft opinion written by Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito that would overturn the Court’s controversial 1973 decision in Roe v. Wade indicates that support for unfettered abortion after the first trimester (12 weeks) of pregnancy is exceedingly low, with only 28% approving of it in the second trimester, and 19% in the third.
It remains to be seen whether those attitudes will be reflected at the ballot box. But the Governor’s full-throated defense of abortion until birth may provide an issue to his Republican challenger.
