Wisconsin Republicans eye abortion ballot initiative creating 12- to 14-week restriction

Republicans in the Wisconsin General Assembly are eyeing an abortion ballot initiative that would restrict the procedure after 12 to 14 weeks of pregnancy, but Gov. Tony Evers (D-WI) is threatening a veto.

The initiative would appear on the ballot in April 2024 and act as a counter to many of the abortion-expanding initiatives other states have passed since the overturn of Roe v. Wade in 2022.

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Evers vowed Thursday that he would veto any attempt to restrict abortion before 20 weeks of gestation, which is the state’s current standard.

“The bottom line for me is this: Wisconsinites should be able to make their own reproductive healthcare decisions without interference from politicians who don’t know anything about their lives, their family, or their circumstances,” Evers said. “I’ll veto any bill that makes reproductive healthcare any less accessible for Wisconsinites than it is right now.”

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Abortion has been a unique issue in the Badger State since the overturn of Roe because the Supreme Court’s decision reinstated an 1849 law banning the procedure, which had been nullified for decades after Roe. That 174-year-old law was struck down earlier this month by a county judge after featuring prominently in the race to fill a state Supreme Court seat, which was ultimately won by now-Justice Janet Protasiewicz, who openly supported abortion access during the race.

“I get that folks on both sides of this are super passionate on all or nothing,” Republican state Rep. Scott Krug told WSAU. “But Wisconsin voters are not there for an all-or-nothing abortion process. It just isn’t going to happen.”

“People are not going to sit down and be OK with abortion on demand and people on the other side are not going to sit down and be OK with no abortion whatsoever,” he added. “So there’s got to be an in-between.”

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Republican Speaker Robin Vos said his caucus will try to pass a referendum for voters to limit abortion access that would then appear on the April ballot using a rare maneuver that only allows a bill to become law if it is passed by the legislature, signed by the governor, and approved by the voters, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

“I’d like to put something on the ballot in April that allows the people of Wisconsin to be the ones who get the final say on making a decision on abortion,” Vos said. “So it’s not the court. It’s not the legislature. It’s not the governor. It’s going to be the people who get the final choice.”