Arizona lawmaker says she plans to have an abortion after learning her pregnancy isn’t viable

PHOENIX (AP) — An Arizona lawmaker announced on the state Senate floor Monday that she plans to have an abortion after learning that her pregnancy is not viable.

State Sen. Eva Burch, a registered nurse known for her reproductive rights activism, was surrounded by fellow Democratic senators as she made the announcement, The Arizona Republic reported.

Burch said that she found out a few weeks ago that “against all odds,” she was pregnant. The mother of two living children from west Mesa who is running for reelection said she has had “a rough journey” with fertility. She experienced her first miscarriage 13 years ago, was pregnant many times and terminated a nonviable pregnancy as she campaigned for her senate seat two years ago, she said.

Now, Burch said that her current pregnancy is not progressing and not viable and she has made an appointment to terminate.

“I don’t think people should have to justify their abortions,” Burch said. “But I’m choosing to talk about why I made this decision because I want us to be able to have meaningful conversations about the reality of how the work that we do in this body impacts people in the real world.”

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