Louisiana’s Democratic governor on Thursday signed a ban on abortion as early as six weeks of pregnancy, a move that puts him squarely in line with the leaders of other conservative Southern states, while provoking anger from members of his own party.
With his signature, Governor John Edwards made Louisiana the fifth state to enact a law prohibiting abortion when a fetal heartbeat is detected, joining Mississippi, Kentucky, Ohio and Georgia.
Alabama has gone further, outlawing virtually all abortions.
Louisiana’s law does not contain exceptions for pregnancies from rape or incest.
However, the bill’s signing would not affect the state’s three abortion clinics anytime soon. Louisiana’s law takes effect only if the law in neighboring Mississippi, which was recently blocked by a judge, is upheld by a federal appeals court.
Edwards, a Catholic running for re-election this year, did not hold a public bill signing or issue a statement about it, instead announcing his action through his office.
He had repeatedly said that he intended to sign the measure, citing his faith and saying his views match those of the people in his conservative, religious state.
“This is an issue I’ve been consistent on forever. I am pro-life,” he said earlier this month on his radio show, when asked about the bill.
Louisiana legislators overwhelmingly supported the ban , with a 79-23 House vote and 31-5 Senate vote.
Lawmakers in conservative states across the nation are striking at the US Supreme Court’s 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that legalized abortion nationally.
Abortion opponents are pushing new restrictions on the procedure in the hopes that a case will make its way to the high court and two new conservative justices appointed by US President Donald Trump could help overturn Roe.
None of the abortion bans enacted this year have taken effect, and all are expected to face legal challenges that will delay any enforcement of the prohibitions against the procedure.
Opponents of the so-called heartbeat bills say that they would effectively eliminate abortion as an option before many women realize they are pregnant and would violate constitutional privacy protections.
Several hundred pink-clad Planned Parenthood supporters filled the Louisiana State Capitol to protest the ban ahead of the bill signing.
“The unprecedented and extreme attacks on abortion we’re seeing across the country, including here in Louisiana, are dangerous to patient health and well-being,” Petrice Sams-Abiodun, with Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast, said in a statement.
Louisiana’s law includes an exception from the abortion ban to prevent the pregnant woman’s death or “a serious risk of the substantial and irreversible impairment of a major bodily function” — or if the pregnancy is deemed “medically futile.”
However, it does not include an exception for a pregnancy caused by rape or incest, drawing criticism that the law forces continued trauma on women who have been victimized.
Under the bill, a doctor who contravenes the prohibition could face a prison sentence of up to two years, along with medical license revocation.
The abortion-rights debates that divide state Capitols across the nation cause fewer ripples in the Louisiana State Legislature. It is one of the country’s most staunchly anti-abortion states, with a law on the books that immediately outlaws abortion if Roe v. Wade is ever overturned.
Louisiana’s latest abortion ban won support from many Democrats and was sponsored by US Senator John Milkovich, a Democrat.
The governor also won some Republican praise for his position.
“While Governor Edwards and I disagree on a lot of things, I’m proud that he stands for life,” said US Representative Julie Emerson, a Republican.
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