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More than half of all US states have some kind of abortion ban law that is likely to take effect if Roe v Wade is overturned by the United States Supreme Court, according to a report.
On Monday, a leaked Supreme Court draft opinion written by Samuel Alito and published by POLITICO revealed that the court has voted to strike down the landmark 1973 ruling, which legalized abortion in the United States.
Alito wrote in part, ‘Roe was egregiously wrong from the start.’ The George W. Bush-appointed justice goes on to say that the issue of abortion should be returned to the ‘people’s elected representatives’ to decide.
The opinion was drafted in February 2022. It’s likely that a final ruling will be made public within the next two months, reports Politico.
Republican-appointed justices – Clarence Thomas, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett voted with Alito.
And states across the country are laying the groundwork for what comes after the more than 40-year-old ruling is nullified.
According to the pro-reproductive rights group The Guttmacher Institute, at least 22 states have laws on the books that would come into effect once the decision is officially adopted.
The organization also identified four more states that it expects to pass new abortion bans in the near future, marking a total of 26 states that appear set to ban the procedures.