Abortion foes target Albuquerque clinic

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Three years ago, anti-abortion “missionaries” Tara and Bud Shaver left Operation Rescue’s base in Kansas with one target: a clinic that abortion opponents say has turned this southwestern city into the late-term abortion capital of America.

But after a loss at the medical board and making little headway in the Democratic-controlled Legislature, their group, Project Defending Life, gathered enough signatures to place a late-term abortion ban on the municipal ballot.

It is believed to be the first such referendum of its kind in the country and is being watched as a possible new front for activism in the abortion wars that have typically been waged at the federal and state levels.

Today, Albuquerque voters will decide whether to ban abortions after 20 weeks following an emotional and graphic campaign.

The outcome is anyone’s guess in a state where abortion has traditionally been a non-issue.

NARAL Pro-Choice America President Ilyse Hogue said it is the first municipal ballot on abortion that she knows of, and her group is watching the election closely. “I am concerned every single time these extreme ideologues seek to roll back what we believe is settled law in terms of a woman being able to make decisions about her health,” Hogue said.