Abortion Bills Face Locke Veto Voters Support Roe Vs. Wade Decision, Governor Says

On the 25th anniversary of the Supreme Court’s landmark Roe vs. Wade decision, Gov. Gary Locke and abortion-rights activists said Thursday they’re ready for yet another round of battles.

Republicans want to ban a procedure they call “partial-birth” abortion and want to require parental notification before a minor can have an abortion.

Locke, surrounded by Democratic lawmakers and abortion-rights activists, made it clear he’d veto either bill if he gets a chance. Republican leaders have said their plan is to send the “partial-birth” measure straight to the ballot, bypassing Locke.

The parental notification measure, similar to laws in 39 other states, has the backing of Senate Majority Leader Dan McDonald, R-Bellevue, and other key Republicans. But so far, sponsors are not planning to place the issue on the November ballot.

Democrat Locke said Washington voters have affirmed their support for abortion rights on three separate occasions, including the 1970 vote that made the state the first with a voter-approved abortion-rights law.

“Abortion continues to be used as a political football,” he said. “The Roe vs. Wade decision continues to have solid bipartisan support among the public. … Many Washingtonians are frustrated by the continuing abortion debate, the annual effort in the Legislature to undermine a woman’s constitutional right to reproductive choice.”

Locke said that for generations now, people have come to see abortion as “a personal and medical decision, not a political one.”

The governor said lawmakers should turn their attention to finding ways to prevent unwanted pregnancies, thus reducing the instances where abortion is even a consideration.