A poster held up at a news conference at the state Capitol in Phoenix, Ariz. advocates for the repeal of the state’s remaining anti-abortion laws on Jan. 22, 2025. Arizona voters in 2024 approved Proposition 139, which enshrined the procedure as a constitutional right, but voiding the state’s existing anti-abortion laws must be done either piecemeal through lawsuits or by the legislature. Photo by Gloria Rebecca Gomez | Arizona Mirror
On the 52nd anniversary of Roe v. Wade, Arizona Democrats called on their Republican colleagues to support repealing anti-abortion laws that remain on the books, saying that voters want guaranteed access to the procedure, not restrictions.
Last year, 61% of Arizonans voted to pass Proposition 139, enshrining abortion as a right in the state constitution and prohibiting any attempt to “deny, restrict or interfere” with a woman’s ability to obtain one.
But rolling back decades of hostile laws isn’t automatic. Legal action is necessary to remove each of the state’s more than 50 anti-abortion laws.
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That includes a 15-week gestational ban with no exceptions for rape or incest that was the law of the land until last year, when reproductive rights organizations asked the court to void it because it conflicts with the voter-approved protections in Prop. 139. The case is still in the early stages, but Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes, a vocal proponent of abortion rights, has agreed not to enforce the gestational ban while litigation continues, giving providers across the state a legal shield under which to provide care without fear of criminalization.
Dr. DeShawn Taylor, owner of Desert Star Institute for Family Planning, one of a handful of private abortion clinics in the Valley, said that she’s returned to performing abortions beyond 15 weeks, reassured by Mayes’ promise that no doctor will be prosecuted while the lawsuit against the gestational ban is ongoing. But there are still too many laws that tie the hands of providers like her when it comes to giving her patients the best care she can, she said.
She shared the story of a woman who arrived at her clinic just one week after the lawsuit against the 15-week law was filed. The woman was shocked to learn she was more than 15 weeks pregnant, and panicked when she initially thought she wouldn’t be able to receive an abortion. Taylor and clinic staff assured her she would be able to terminate her pregnancy.
But while the clinic feels legally safe ignoring the 15-week law for now, it is still forced to operate under all the other anti-abortion directives which complicate and lengthen treatment that still exist in state statute.
“What still needs to happen is she has to come back at a future date; what still has to happen is we have to collect information from her to report to the state; and what’s still happening is that she cannot get an abortion close to where she lives because most abortion clinics are in Phoenix, because of all the web of restrictions,” Taylor said, describing the impact of laws that govern how abortion is carried out in the state ranging from a mandatory 24-hour waiting period to reporting and certification requirements for clinics.
Rep. Analise Ortiz, a Phoenix Democrat who has built her political brand around advocating for abortion access, said the 2024 election results leave little doubt about how voters want lawmakers to approach regulating reproductive health care.
“An overwhelming majority of Arizona voters made it clear they want abortion to be legal and accessible,” she said during a Wednesday morning news conference. “This legislature, regardless of its makeup, has a mandate from voters who value freedom and don’t want the government interfering in our private, personal health care decisions.”
The GOP legislative majority has successfully overseen the passage of dozens of increased constraints on abortion since the 1980s, and after expanding its hold by three seats during the 2024 election, cutting into the already slim Democratic presence in both chambers, it’s unlikely that any bipartisan push to make access to abortion easier will emerge.
Instead, some conservative lawmakers have introduced legislation aimed at advancing pro-life initiatives without directly violating Prop. 139. Tucson Republican Rep. Rachel Keshel sponsored a bill that requires the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System, the state’s Medicaid health insurance program, to include a link on its website’s home page that leads to information about agencies that could help women through pregnancy and childbirth — but not those that provide abortions or refer patients to abortion clinics. (An existing law, which is one of many reproductive rights groups are eyeing for future lawsuits, requires abortion providers to give patients similar information before performing an abortion at least 24 hours before going forward with the procedure.)
And Rep. Walt Blackman introduced a bill that would bar the state or any of its agencies from spending any public money in a contract with a person who performs or promotes abortion care. But the Republican from Snowflake also proposed setting up a grant program to award state funds to pregnancy centers, faith-based organizations that provide medical services for women with the aim of convincing them to reject an abortion.
But Democrats remain undeterred in their efforts to eliminate restrictions on abortion care. While local reproductive rights organizations and abortion providers have signaled an intent to take on the state’s anti-abortion laws in court, the process is costly and time-consuming. This year, Democrats have proposed measures that would repeal the prohibition on providing abortion consultations via telemedicine appointments, overturn a law that prevents the abortion pill from being sent in the mail, and allow providers to advertise their services without the threat of a misdemeanor.
Similar efforts in the past have stagnated in the legislature without Republican approval, and that is likely to happen again this year. None of the bills aimed at removing barriers to abortion have yet been assigned to any committees.
On Tuesday, advocates urged the GOP majority to reconsider its opposition to repealing the anti-abortion laws. Mackenzie Darling, an attorney with the Arizona Proactive Reproductive Justice Alliance, which is behind this legislative session’s campaign to overturn the state’s anti-abortion laws, said that restoring full access to the procedure is critical for supporting pregnant Arizonans.
“Each of us should be free to make decisions about our health and our future with dignity and respect,” she said.
Rep. Sarah Liguori, D-Phoenix, added that giving women peace of mind is the right thing to do. Pregnancy, she said, is nerve-wracking enough without threats to reproductive health care from elected officials at both the state and federal levels.
“Pregnancy is equally exciting and it’s equally scary,” she said. “And now (what) people are having to run through their mind is: ‘What if my legislator introduces something that hinders my care? What if the president orders a repeal and bans abortion in the country?’”
Reproductive rights advocates fear that President Donald Trump’s administration will usher in new laws and policies that constrain abortion care across the country. While Trump has stated that he believes abortion should be left up to the states to decide, he has in the past voiced support for a national ban, and one of his executive orders on Monday included the phrase “at conception,” alluding to the fetal personhood agenda that pro-life politicians have advanced as a way to outlaw virtually all abortions.
Likewise, Republicans in Congress, who now hold a majority in both chambers, and anti-abortion organizations are anticipating the revival and easy passage of anti-abortion proposals that were blocked by Democrats in years past. Any federal action to limit the ability of women to obtain an abortion would nullify the guaranteed right in Prop. 139.
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