The 2022 election could decide the fate of reproductive rights in North Carolina
The “most important election of our lifetimes” seems to happen every other year. But with reproductive rights hanging in the balance, it’s nearly impossible to overstate the importance of the 2022 midterms.
The U.S. Supreme Court is expected to issue a ruling this summer on a Mississippi law that could overturn, or at least significantly weaken, the precedent set by Roe v. Wade in 1973. Such a ruling could, in effect, give states the ability to decide whether to outlaw abortions, which could be catastrophic in states that have long sought to restrict it.
Already, a number of state legislatures have passed anti-abortion laws of varying severity. States like Arizona and Florida have opted to ban abortion after 15 weeks, while Oklahoma passed a law that would eliminate it almost entirely.
North Carolina lawmakers have tried in recent years to pass various bills that restrict access to abortion, but they haven’t had enough votes to override the veto of Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper, who has refused to sign any of them. Without a legislative supermajority or a Republican governor, future attempts to undermine abortion rights will likely continue to be unsuccessful. And, unlike some states, North Carolina doesn’t have an abortion “trigger law” in place that would automatically ban or severely restrict abortion if Roe v. Wade is overturned.
Still, getting an abortion in North Carolina certainly isn’t easy. Since only nine of the state’s 100 counties have clinics that offer some form of abortion services, many North Carolinians, especially those who live in rural areas, have to travel significant distances in order to seek care.
Despite the fragility of abortion rights in North Carolina, they appear to be safe — at least for now. That, however, is predicated on the assumption that Republicans will be unable to regain a veto-proof majority in the state legislature this year, which isn’t a sure bet.
“It is clear that abortion is on the ballot, that this is the election that matters, and it’s arguably the most important election of our lifetime for those of us who care deeply about access to health care and safeguarding safe and legal abortion,” Paige Johnson, chief program officer for Planned Parenthood Votes! South Atlantic, told me.
As expected, GOP candidates are already emphasizing their pro-life stance on the campaign trail. U.S. Rep. Ted Budd, the current frontrunner in the Republican primary for North Carolina’s open U.S. Senate seat, has said he is “100% pro-life, no matter how you measure it” and vowed to push abortion restrictions “all the way back to the point of conception.”
Perhaps unusually, reproductive rights are already defining a Democratic primary in North Carolina’s 1st congressional district, where one candidate has received criticism for his record on abortion. Pro-choice groups like Planned Parenthood and Lillian’s List have raised concerns about state Sen. Don Davis’s record of voting with Republicans on certain legislation, such as state budgets that allocated funding to anti-abortion pregnancy clinics and the 2019 “born alive” abortion bill.
Davis’s toughest primary opponent is former state Sen. Erica Smith, who Johnson described as a “vocal opponent” of attacks on abortion and reproductive health care in the General Assembly.
2022 is not the only year that will matter for reproductive rights in North Carolina. Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, for example, is vehemently pro-life and has likened abortion to murder. He’s expected to run for governor in 2024; if he wins, North Carolina would almost certainly become a state where abortion is considerably restricted.
But what makes this election even more important is that its consequences will extend far beyond just our state. Should the protections afforded by Roe v. Wade be reversed, North Carolina is expected to be one of the only states in the Southeast where people can safely seek reproductive health care, Johnson said.
“Protecting access to abortion in North Carolina could mean protecting access to safe and legal abortion in the entire Southeast,” Johnson said. “When we look at states like Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia, Tennessee and South Carolina that are poised to pass restrictions or outright bans on abortion, all roads lead to North Carolina for people to be able to seek safe and legal abortion.”
This story was originally published April 10, 2022 at 5:00 AM with the headline "The 2022 election could decide the fate of reproductive rights in North Carolina."
