North Carolina’s political conflict over abortion is epitomized by two leaders: its Democratic governor, Mr. Cooper and Republican Speaker of the House of Representatives Tim Moore.
Former Attorney General Mr. Cooper wants to preserve the state’s current law. He has ordered additional protections, including barring the deportation of anyone involved in legal abortions in North Carolina.
But Republican dominance in the Legislature means Mr. Cooper’s most powerful tool. “Our law is now restrictive enough in North Carolina,” Mr. Cooper said in a February interview.
Referendum Explains State’s Political Friction: Latest Meredith College poll Registered voters found that 57 percent of respondents wanted to protect North Carolina’s current abortion law or expand it beyond the 20-week limit. About 35 percent of those surveyed supported changing abortion access at 15 weeks or less.
Mr. Moore said.
Mr. Moore also said recently Internet A swing Democrat, who he declined to name, was willing to vote for a 12- or 13-week restriction. That crossover would be significant because House Republicans are one vote shy of a supermajority.
For now, even North Carolina residents are feeling the effect of the bans in neighboring states: When Maria, 31, who lives outside Asheville, learned she was unexpectedly pregnant in late June, she knew one child was more than she could handle. Handle. Maria, who did not want to give her full name because her family opposed the abortion, says she is dealing with depression and has several other medical conditions.
She called the nearest abortion clinic, which happened to be in Asheville. The wait, she was told, was two months. Then she called two clinics in Charlotte, a two-hour drive away. One did not respond. Another said maybe next month. She made the appointment.
