Iowa Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds has called lawmakers back to Des Moines for a special session. Reynolds intends to pursue legislation to restrict abortion access in the state.
Back in 2018, Reynolds signed a law that banned abortion once a fetal heartbeat is detected, which is usually around six weeks. The law was blocked because of the U.S. Supreme Court’s long-standing 1973 ruling in Roe v. Wade, which guaranteed abortion rights nationwide.
When the Supreme Court overturned Roe last year, Reynolds immediately sought to revive the 2018 law. But in June, the Iowa Supreme Court permanently blocked the law.
The court cited that no legal mechanism exists that would allow the law to be revived. The court was split 3-3, which has left the possibility open for the GOP-controlled state Legislature to try to pass a similar ban. But any new law would likely be challenged in state court.
This is a complicated story that right-leaning media outlets have largely ignored. According to the SAN Media Miss tool, this story is considered a media miss on the right due to how unbalanced the scale of coverage is.
The blocked law, or so-called fetal heartbeat law, has critics on both sides of the aisle. A pregnant woman may not know she’s pregnant until after the six week window, and medical experts say the cardiac activity is not an actual heartbeat but rather an initial flutter of electric movement within the cells in an embryo.
Democrats in the Iowa Legislature issued statements denouncing the proposed restrictions, saying it goes against what the majority of Iowa residents want.
An Associated Press poll shows many Americans, including Iowans, support at least some access to abortion in general. Reynolds disagrees.
“After years of litigation, the Iowa Supreme Court was split 3-3 last month in its opinion regarding whether a lower court’s injunction of the fetal heartbeat law should be dissolved. This lack of action disregards the will of Iowa voters and lawmakers who will not rest until the unborn are protected by law,” Reynolds said in a news release.
Reynolds’ office confirmed that lawmakers will meet on July 11.
Reynolds has been in office since 2017 and has only called a special session one other time. In 2021, lawmakers came together in two separate special sessions to approve the drawing of congressional and legislative districts.
