Arizona’s Abortion Law Standoff: Gov. Hobbs Challenges 1864 Statute

Gov. Katie Hobbs (D-AZ) accused Republicans of the state’s abortion restriction, which dates back to the 2022 Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization Supreme Court decision.

On Tuesday, the Arizona Supreme Court upheld an 1864 law that prohibits abortions in nearly all situations, except for mothers facing emergency life-threatening conditions. Despite protests from several of the state’s Republicans, Hobbs lambasted them for the choice and placed the burden completely on their shoulders.

“The fact is that some of the Republicans right now, who are saying that this decision went too far, are the same politicians who celebrated the Dobbs decision, which paved the way for this court ruling today,” she said on CNN in a recent interview. “And the speaker of the House and the Senate president both weighed in in this case with an amicus brief, urging the court to do exactly what it did today.”

Hobbs and her administration have promised to challenge the verdict, with the governor pressing the legislature to act.

In a statement issued earlier Tuesday, Hobbs promised to do all in her power to prevent “radical extremists” from seizing “control over women’s bodies.”
Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes has sworn not to allow the bill to be enacted.

“No woman or doctor will be prosecuted under this draconian law … as long as I am attorney general,” she was quoted as saying. “Not by me, nor by any other county attorney in our state. “Not on my watch.”

Several Republicans, concerned about an abortion backlash harming their chances in November, have largely condemned the decision. Senate candidate Kari Lake was among those who expressed her opposition.

“This is a very personal issue that should be determined by each state and her people,” Lake said in a statement on Tuesday. “I oppose today’s ruling, and I am calling on Katie Hobbs and the State Legislature to come up with an immediate common sense solution that Arizonans can support.”