Wade decision guaranteeing the constitutional right to an abortion. The Arizona Supreme Court has delivered a landmark decision in giving the go-ahead to enforce a long-dormant law that bans nearly all abortions, drastically altering the legal landscape for terminating pregnancies in the state. The law predating Arizona's statehood provides no exceptions for rape or incest and allows abortions only if the mother's life is in jeopardy.

The Tuesday decision threw out an earlier lower-court decision that concluded doctors couldn't be charged for performing abortions in the first 15 weeks of pregnancy. The law orders prosecution for "a person who provides, supplies or administers to a pregnant woman, or procures such woman to take any medicine, drugs or substance, or uses or employs any instrument or other means whatever, with intent thereby to procure the miscarriage of such woman, unless it is necessary to save her life."

The ruling puts the issue of abortion access front and center in a battleground state for the 2024 presidential election and partisan control of the U.S. Senate. Democrats immediately pounced on the ruling, blaming former President Donald Trump for the loss of abortion access because he appointed the justices who formed the majority that ended the national right to abortion. President Joe Biden and his allies are emphasizing efforts to restore abortion rights, while Trump has avoided endorsing a national abortion ban and warned that the issue could lead to Republican losses.

Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs called on the state Legislature to repeal the ban, stating that it will have devastating consequences for Arizona. Under a near-total ban, the number of abortions in Arizona is expected to drop drastically from about 1,100 monthly. Abortion rights advocates have begun a push to ask Arizona voters to create a constitutional right to abortion, guaranteeing abortion rights until a fetus could survive outside the womb, typically around 24 weeks.

The decision will give Arizona the strictest abortion law of the top-tier battleground states, setting the stage for a contentious political battle in the upcoming election. Staunch Trump ally and abortion opponent Kari Lake is challenging Democratic Rep. Ruben Gallego for the U.S. Senate seat now held by Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, who isn't seeking a second term. The future of abortion access in Arizona remains uncertain as the state grapples with the implications of this landmark ruling.