Democratic Governors Nationwide Unveil Plans To Protect Abortion

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After the U.S. Supreme Court temporarily allowed mifepristone, which is a prescription drug used in abortions obtained via medication, to remain available despite a recent ruling from a Trump-picked federal judge that would’ve undone the federal approval for the drug, Democratic leaders promptly spoke out.

“While today’s ruling ensures that mifepristone continues to remain legal and accessible across the country, we know that the next attack on reproductive freedom is just around the corner,” Governor Maura Healey of Massachusetts said. “Patients and providers should know that, in Massachusetts, we have their backs. We’ll continue to stand for civil rights and freedom, and we will always protect access to reproductive health care, including medication abortion.” In tangible terms, Healey has moved to outline legal protections for those conducting an abortion via medication in Massachusetts, offering legal protections against potential proceedings emerging in some other state. Her team was also among the Democratic gubernatorial teams involved in assembling stockpiles of abortion drugs.

In Michigan, where Governor Gretchen Whitmer is in her second term, recent actions have included voters’ approval of an amendment to the state Constitution protecting abortion rights and the formal revocation of an extremely old, sweeping abortion ban that was never formally undone from Roe v. Wade until Whitmer and Democratic legislators’ actions. Besides holding the governorship, Democrats nabbed unified control of both chambers of that state’s legislature in the midterm elections last year, providing for recent progress, which has also included the approval of universal background checks for gun sales conducted in the state.

“Last November, Michiganders spoke in overwhelming numbers in favor of protecting our fundamental reproductive freedoms, and I was proud to sign legislation repealing the extreme 1931 abortion ban to uphold Michiganders’ rights,” Whitmer said. “I will continue monitoring this situation as it moves through the legal process and will use every tool in my toolbox to make sure every Michigander has control over their own body.”

In Arizona, Governor Katie Hobbs also addressed the situation. She’s in her first term after a narrow win last year. “The fight to protect our reproductive freedoms is far from over,” she said. “We have the right to control our own bodies – not judges and certainly not extremist politicians – and I pledge to never back down when extremists threaten the right to choose in Arizona.”

“Mifepristone is safe, legal, and has been FDA-approved for more than two decades,” California’s Gavin Newsom added Friday. “For now, the Court has followed science, data, and the law rather than an extreme and out of touch political agenda. Medication abortion is available and accessible here in California and we will continue to fight to protect people’s freedom to choose.”