Abortion Rights: Michigan Governor concerned about abortion rights

Governor Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan requested the state’s highest court on Thursday to recognise the right to abortion as guaranteed by the state constitution, in the wake of a U.S. Supreme Court decision that might jeopardise abortion rights nationwide.

Whitmer, a Democrat competing for re-election in a tight contest this year, is one of many Democratic state leaders attempting to codify abortion rights ahead of the Supreme Court’s likely ruling this spring.

The conservative majority on the Supreme Court has indicated a desire to overturn or weaken the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision, which established the right to terminate a pregnancy before the foetus is viable, which is roughly 24 weeks.

In a statement, Whitmer stated, “If Roe is reversed, abortion may become illegal in Michigan in practically every instance — including cases of rape and incest.” “That is why I have filed a lawsuit and am utilising my executive authority to push the Michigan Supreme Court to rule on whether Michigan’s state constitution supports the right to abortion as soon as possible.”

Whitmer said it was critical for the Michigan Supreme Court to prevent the implementation of a 1931 abortion prohibition that might take effect if Roe were to be overturned.

According to The Guttmacher Institute, an abortion rights advocacy research group, Michigan is one of nine states with such pre-Roe abortion laws still on the books, which might be resurrected if Roe is reversed.

On Thursday, Planned Parenthood of Michigan filed a lawsuit to stop the state’s pre-Roe restriction from being enforced.

Whitmer’s decision was dubbed “autocratic” by Right to Life of Michigan, an anti-abortion group.

“Governor Whitmer is attempting to exploit the Michigan Supreme Court’s power by establishing a non-existent right to unrestricted abortion,” the organisation claimed on Twitter.

This year, New Jersey, Colorado, Vermont, and Maryland all enacted bills to safeguard or expand abortion access.

New abortion restrictions have been pushed passed by Republican-led states in the expectation that they will be upheld if the Supreme Court overturns federal abortion rights. Oklahoma’s legislature enacted a near-total abortion ban this week, threatening providers with prison time.

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