MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) – There’s no sign of U.S. abortion law changing anytime soon, but Alabama wants to be ready if it ever does.
A proposal in the Republican-controlled Legislature would declare Alabama a “right to life” state by amending the state constitution. The House of Representatives will vote on the bill Thursday, and if it passes the Legislature and is signed by the Republican governor, the constitutional amendment would go before voters in 2018.
Opponents believe Republicans are just trying to put a largely symbolic anti-abortion referendum on the ballot the same year lawmakers are up for re-election. But there is optimism among conservatives that Roe v. Wade, the 1973 law establishing a women’s right to an abortion, could be overturned now that President Donald Trump is in power.
Trump has said he would appoint justices open to overturning Roe v. Wade and nominated conservative judge Neil Gorsuch to replace the late Justice Antonin Scalia. Because of the age of some of the justices, many believe Trump may get another appointment during his presidency, perhaps giving the court a conservative majority for the first time in decades.
“We want to make sure that at a state level, if Roe v. Wade is overturned, that the Alabama Constitution cannot be used as a mechanism by which to claim that there is a right to abortion,” said state Rep. Matt Fridy, the legislation’s sponsor.