Minnesota Senate Passes Abortion Bill Opponents Call “The Most Extreme” in the Nation

After 15 hours of contentious debate, the Minnesota Senate approved a bill guaranteeing abortion rights early Saturday morning, a pro-life bill that Republicans have called the “most extreme” in the nation.

The Reproductive Options Protection (PRO) Act passed the state Senate 34-33, after Republicans tried to amend the bill 35 times without success. The bill establishes that “everyone has the fundamental right to make autonomous decisions about their own reproductive health.”

Democrats had fast-tracked the legislation in response to the US Supreme Court’s decision last summer to strike down Roe v. Wade, ending federal abortion protections. While the right to abortion was previously guaranteed in a 1995 Minnesota Supreme Court decision, Doe v. Gomez, abortion rights activists and Democrats said the PRO law was needed to codify abortion rights into state law, as well as the rights to contraception, fertility treatment and pregnancy.

“What Minnesotans fear is seeing, potentially, what happened at the federal level with our US Supreme Court could eventually, at some point in the future, happen here in Minnesota,” said bill sponsor state Sen. Jennifer McEwen, D-Duluth. “The decisions of our courts, upholding our fundamental human rights, are as strong as the judges who uphold them”.

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Pro-life and pro-choice protesters flocked to the Minnesota State Capitol building to voice their views on the PRO Act on Friday.
(AP Photo/Steve Karnowski)

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Supporters of the bill say it won’t change the status quo in Minnesota.

“The PRO Act solidifies the human rights of Minnesotans in state law and is an insurance policy that our rights will not be taken away by politicians or judges,” said Dr. Sarah Traxler, medical director of Planned Parenthood North Central States.

“All I want, and Minnesota doctors want, is to provide the best possible care for our patients. And by passing the PRO Act as state law, the Minnesota Legislature will allow us to do just that,” he added in a statement. .

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The Minnesota Senate passed a bill Saturday to include broad protections for abortion rights in state statutes, making it difficult for future courts to back down.
(AP Photo/Steve Karnowski)

Opponents disagree, arguing that the bill establishes the right to abortion up to the moment of birth. Republicans tried to amend the bill with “guardrails” that would restrict abortions in the third trimester, but the newly elected Democratic majority blocked their amendments.

“Today we are not only coding Roe vs. Wade or Doe v. Gomez, as the author has indicated, we are signing into law the most extreme bill in the country,” said Senate Minority Leader GOP Mark Johnson of East Grand Forks during the debate.

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The PRO Act now heads to Democratic Gov. Tim Walz’s desk for his signature. He has said that he supports the bill and will sign it into law.

Associated Press contributed to this report.