Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs signs repeal of 1864 abortion ban

Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs on Thursday signed a repeal of the state’s near-total abortion ban that has been on the books since the Civil War, capping a political scramble sparked by a controversial state Supreme Court ruling last month.

Flanked by Democratic lawmakers who helped wrangle the bill through the GOP-controlled Legislature, Hobbs signed the repeal inside the state Capitol one day after the state Senate passed it.

"I've heard from doctors who were unsure if they would wind up in a jail cell for simply doing their job, women who told me they didn't know if it was safe to start a family here in Arizona," Hobbs said at the signing ceremony. "These excruciating conversations are exactly why I have made one thing clear, very clear: This ban needs to be repealed."

Her signature marked the latest chapter in the fight over abortion rights in Arizona following the state Supreme Court’s ruling to reinstate a near-total ban on abortion that first went into effect in 1864, before Arizona had even been granted statehood.

The conservative-leaning court’s decision made enforceable a law making abortion a felony punishable by two to five years in prison for anyone who performs one or helps a woman obtain an abortion. The law, which was codified in 1901 and again in 1913, after Arizona gained statehood, outlaws abortion from the moment of conception but includes an exception to save the woman’s life.

After the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade — striking down federal abortion protections and handing that power to the states — legal questions popped up immediately over whether Arizona officials were obligated to enforce the 1864 law, which had never been repealed, or a 15-week ban on abortion from 2022 that was designed