'Rushing to judgment': AZ speaker punishes GOP rep who voted with Dems to repeal 1864 law

The Arizona House of Representatives — which is under Republican control — narrowly voted Wednesday to repeal the controversial Civil War-era law that effectively outlaws all abortions. The three Republicans who sided with all Democrats to abolish the legislation suffered almost immediate consequences.

According to state government news site Pluribus, the three Arizona Republican lawmakers drew the ire of their party when crossing the aisle to repeal the 1864 law. House Democrats in the Grand Canyon State have sought repeatedly to strike the law from the books, and finally succeeded with the help of GOP Reps. Timothy Dunn, Matt Gress and Justin Wilmeth.

"We should not have rushed this bill through the legislative process. The pre-Roe law has been on the books for decades,” Arizona House Speaker Ben Toma (R) said. “Today, we are rushing to judgement.”

READ MORE: 'Massive implications for November': AZ Supreme Court upholds 19th century anti-abortion law

Pluribus reported that "minutes after the vote," House Speaker Pro Tempore Travis Grantham (R) announced that Gress would be stripped of his seat on the House Appropriations Committee. Gress notably voted with Democrats in all three votes to repeal the anti-abortion law. However, all three were publicly condemned by other members of their caucus following the vote.

"I am disgusted today. Life is one of the tenants of our Republican platform," Rep. Rachel Jones (R) said. "To see people go back on that value is egregious to me."

After the bill's repeal passed the House, it heads to the Arizona Senate, which also has a narrow Republican majority. Should it pass that chamber, it would head to Democratic Governor Katie Hobbs' desk, who would likely sign repeal into law. However, a 2022 law that bans all abortions in Arizona after 15 weeks of gestation would remain on the books.

The three Republicans who voted with Democrats to repeal the law are likely worried about the electoral implications of a law infringing on the reproductive rights of Arizona women in a pivotal, must-win battleground state in the November election. With several competitive House districts and a high-profile U.S. Senate race also on the ballot in the same cycle as the presidential election, Arizona voters could potentially decide which party ends up in control of not just both chambers of Congress, but the White House as well.

READ MORE: 'We got you': AZ Republicans mock activists after voting down repeal of controversial 1864 law

Earlier this month, the Arizona Supreme Court ruled that the 1864 law — which was passed when Arizona was still a territory, women lacked the right to vote and the Civil War still raged — was valid. While the law punishes abortion providers and pregnant individuals with imprisonment if they violate the law, Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes (D) clarified that her office would not be prosecuting anyone for abortion-related crimes.

Aside from Arizona, abortion is also on the ballot this November in Florida. A new law banning abortion after six weeks, when many pregnant individuals may not even suspect they're pregnant due to a missed menstruation cycle — will go into effect in the Sunshine State on May 1. This fall, Florida voters will get the opportunity to vote on Amendment 4, which would enshrine abortion rights into the state's constitution if 60% of voters approve it. So far, no abortion-related ballot measure has failed since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022, even in traditionally Republican states like Kansas, Kentucky and Montana.

READ MORE: GOP senator gloats: 'Republicans and Trump worked hard to overturn Roe v. Wade'

Click here to read Pluribus' report in its entirety.