
NEW HANOVER COUNTY — Local concerned citizens and organizations are hosting a rally Saturday as a final plea to state legislators on Senate Bill 20.
Participants will gather at 10 a.m. at the intersection of Third and Princess streets for The Action Hour for Abortion Access. The event is being held in conjunction with similar statewide rallies to sustain Gov. Roy Cooper’s veto of the bill.
READ MORE: ‘There is still time’: Gov. Cooper talks abortion ban with local healthcare advocates prior to veto
Senate Bill 20 would ban abortions after 12 weeks, except in the cases of rape and incest, which would be permitted up to 20 weeks. The legislation passed both the North Carolina Senate and House chambers last week in less than 48 hours and heads to Cooper’s desk, where he is expected to veto it.
However, since both chambers have a supermajority, the GOP can override his veto. Only one vote is needed to sustain the veto, and locally, residents are calling on Sen. Michael Lee and Rep. Ted Davis to take action.
Cooper, along with others, has called out the two legislators for campaigning to retain abortion laws as they are now, which is permissible up to 20 weeks. Lee called Cooper a “liar” and said his stance has always been that he would be comfortable with a first-trimester ban, with exceptions.
Davis, who was absent from the House vote last week, campaigned he would not be persuaded by Speaker Moore and stand his ground on keeping the law as it is.
Requirements and restrictions of S.B. 20 will make abortion “virtually unavailable to many North Carolinians by effectively shutting down clinics and restricting access to health care, endangering all pregnant people in North Carolina,” according to the group hosting Saturday’s rally.
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