CV NEWS FEED // Iowa Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds on Wednesday announced she would call a special session of Iowa’s State Legislature next Tuesday morning in order to pass pro-life legislation.
Last month, the state Supreme Court deadlocked by a vote of 3-3, preventing a six-week “heartbeat bill” Reynolds signed back in 2018 from taking effect. The governor hopes that the planned July 11 special session will result in pro-life legislation that could pass court muster.
“Iowans have elected representatives willing to stand up for the rights of the unborn and, in doing so, they have voted strongly in support of pro-life principles and against the arbitrary destruction of innocent, defenseless lives,” Reynolds stated in a Wednesday press release.
#breaking: Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds is calling lawmakers back to Des Moines for a special session on Tuesday, July 11 to pass new abortion restrictions after a deadlocked Iowa Supreme Court declined to lift an injunction on a 6-week abortion ban signed into law in 2018. #ialegis pic.twitter.com/MfnWysrMBf
— Tom Barton (@tjbarton83) July 5, 2023
The court’s “lack of action disregards the will of Iowa voters and lawmakers who will not rest until the unborn are protected by law,” Reynolds continued:
I believe the pro-life movement is the most important human rights cause of our time. Not only will I continue to fight against the inhumanity of abortion, but I will also remain committed to supporting women in planning for motherhood, promoting fatherhood and parenting, and continuing policies that encourage strong families.
Rita Hart, the chair of the Iowa Democratic Party, responded by decrying the governor’s pro-life stance as “extreme.” “Abortion bans are wildly unpopular among Iowa voters, and those voters will have a chance to remind their legislators who they work for at the ballot box in 2024 and 2026,” Hart claimed.
Republicans currently enjoy large majorities in both chambers of the Iowa legislature.