DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) 鈥� Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds asked the state courts on Thursday to allow her to implement a law banning most abortions that a judge permanently blocked in 2019.
Reynolds previously said she would instead of calling a special session to hold a divisive abortion debate and vote just months before she and several other Republican leaders run for reelection. The court filing is just the first step in a legal battle that could take months to resolve and end up before the Iowa Supreme Court again.
The 2018 law bans abortions once cardiac activity can be detected, usually around six weeks of pregnancy and before many women know they are pregnant. An Iowa law banning abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy remains in effect while Reynolds pursues the tougher ban in court.
Reynolds鈥� lawyers argue that since the and the have now removed broad constitutional protections for abortion rights, the previous order should be removed and the law enforced.
鈥淭he historic U.S. Supreme Court ruling overturning Roe has given us a new hope and pathway forward to challenge the Iowa court鈥檚 previous decision,鈥� Reynolds said in a statement. 鈥淟ife and death are determined by a person鈥檚 heartbeat, and I believe that includes our unborn children."
Laws such as Iowa's ban abortion though that does not easily translate to medical science. That鈥檚 because at the point where advanced technology can detect that first visual flutter, the embryo isn鈥檛 yet a fetus, and it doesn鈥檛 have a heart. An embryo is termed a fetus eight weeks after fertilization.
Iowa's law contains exceptions for medical emergencies including threats to the mother鈥檚 life, rape, incest, and fetal abnormality.
Iowa House Democratic Leader Jennifer Konfrst said Reynolds is circumventing the will of the people in a state where polls have shown most people support abortion rights. A poll published last month by the Des Moines Register indicated 60% of Iowa residents believe abortion should be legal in most or all cases.
鈥淭his is the opposite of what Iowans are telling us they want," Konfrst said. 鈥淭his is way extreme. We've seen voters across the country reject this and because the governor knows voters would reject this here in Iowa, she's playing politics.鈥�
Iowa鈥檚 high court in June overturned a previous ruling that guaranteed the right to abortion under the state constitution, acting just one week before the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.
Reynolds' lawyers said the state Supreme Court 鈥渃an and should dissolve the injunction permanently right now because no additional factual development is needed to establish that there has been a 'substantial change' in the law.鈥�
The law was successfully challenged by abortion provider Planned Parenthood and lawyers from the American Civil Liberties Union of Iowa. They said they plan to continue to fight Reynolds' efforts in the state.
鈥淭his is an outrageous and dangerous attack on Iowa women looking to take away practically all access to abortion in our state," said ACLU of Iowa Legal Director Rita Bettis Austen. "We will continue to do everything in our power to stop attempts at banning abortion in Iowa.鈥�
David Pitt, The Associated Press
