Iowa Could Outlaw Abortion As Governor Asks Court To Let 6-Week Ban Take Effect

Topline

Iowa could become the latest state to prohibit abortions after six weeks of pregnancy, as Gov. Kim Reynolds (R) asked a state court Thursday to let the state’s abortion ban take effect after it was blocked in 2018.

Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds speaks on October 31, 2020 in Davenport, Iowa.

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Key Facts

Reynolds filed a motion in state district court asking a judge to lift an injunction that blocked Iowa’s six-week ban, which was enacted in 2018 but then struck down in court, after the governor previously vowed in June that she would do so.

Abortion is now legal in Iowa up to 20 weeks into a pregnancy, and the Iowa Supreme Court ruled in 2018 that abortion rights are protected under the state Constitution.

The Iowa Supreme Court then overturned its precedent in June after Reynolds appointed new justices to the court and it became more conservative, ruling abortion rights are not protected in a case concerning a mandatory 24-hour waiting period law that’s now been allowed to take effect.

Since the six-week ban was previously blocked because of the state court’s precedent (along with federal abortion protections through Roe v. Wade, also now overturned), Reynolds argued it should now be allowed to take effect.

The six-week ban would allow exceptions in the case of rape, incest, fetal abnormalities and medical emergencies.

Planned Parenthood of North Central States, one of the parties that brought the initial lawsuit against the ban, said in a statement it would “fight in court to ensure that women can continue to get the care they need and deserve, without political interference.”

Crucial Quote

Following the rulings by the Iowa Supreme Court and U.S. Supreme Court overturning precedents on abortion rights, “no right to an abortion exists under the state or federal constitution,” Reynolds’ attorneys argued in their court filing. “This Court thus has a duty to vacate its injunction so Iowa can enforce its validly enacted law.”

Chief Critic

“Governor Reynolds’ move to revive the six-week abortion ban, which is before most pregnancies can be detected, is both dangerous to women’s health and cruel,” Sarah Stoesz, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood North Central States, said in a statement Thursday. “If she is successful, her move will cause harm to Iowans and their families.”

Big Number

60%. That’s the percentage of Iowans who want abortion to be legal in all or most cases, according to a Des Moines Register/Mediacom Iowa poll conducted in July, which the Register notes marks an all-time high.

Key Background

Reynolds’ request comes after courts have already allowed six-week abortion bans that were previously blocked in Georgia, Ohio and South Carolina to take effect following the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling overturning Roe v. Wade. It also marks the latest in a slew of abortion lawsuits to now be playing out in state court, as abortion rights advocates have filed lawsuits in over a dozen states asking for abortion bans to be struck down under state law. Before the Iowa Supreme Court’s ruling in June, the state was one of six in which state courts had explicitly protected abortion rights, along with Alaska, Florida, Kansas, Minnesota and Montana. Republicans in some of those states are now hoping their state justices will follow Iowa’s lead, with a legal battle now playing out in Florida over the state’s 15-week abortion ban and Montana GOP politicians calling for the precedent in that state to be overturned.