The Nebraska Legislature’s attempt to break a filibuster on a measure that would have outlawed abortion after the sixth week of pregnancy fell one vote short on Thursday.
This indicates that despite Republican Governor Jim Pillen’s vocal call for it, the law is unlikely to advance this year. Following the unsuccessful vote, the Legislature adjourned and won’t meet again until Tuesday.
The state’s attempt to limit access to abortions failed for the second year in a row. Since 2010, Nebraska has had a law that prohibits abortions beyond the 20th week of pregnancy. The Anti-Abortion Bill would be prohibited under the proposed legislation whenever heart activity is seen.
Anti-Abortion Bills Did Not Fly With GOP-Controlled Nebraska
On Thursday, a move to halt debate so that the Anti-Abortion Bill could go to the final round of debate was defeated 32-15. The proposal required 33 votes to pass.
Sen. Merv Riepe abstained, denying the measure the key 33rd vote. He signed on to the measure as a cosponsor but voiced worry earlier this year that a six-week restriction may not give women enough time to realize they were pregnant.
Riepe, a former hospital administrator from Ralston, submitted an amendment Thursday that would have prolonged the planned prohibition to 12 weeks and included any fetal defects considered incompatible with life to the Anti-Abortion Bill’s list of exclusions.
Riepe used the microphone to caution his conservative colleagues that they should pay attention to indicators that abortion will inspire women to vote them out of office after receiving opposition from fellow Republicans on the amendment. He used his own election from the previous year as an example, pointing out that in a four-person contest, he won the May primary with around 45% of the vote and was a stunning 27 points ahead of his closest rival.
However, his margin of victory in the general election over that same challenger—a Democrat who made abortion rights the center of her campaign—fell to just under 5 percentage points after the Supreme Court’s decision in June to overturn Roe.
