AG Stein calls on voters to decide abortion access, pushes back on NC's 20-week abortion ban

Republicans have criticized the Democratic Attorney General for not defending the state law that bans abortion after 20 weeks of pregnancy.

Posted 12:18 a.m. Aug 18, 2022 — Updated 8:31 a.m. Aug 18, 2022

Bryan Anderson

, WRAL state government reporter

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — North Carolina’s Democratic attorney general on Wednesday called on voters concerned about the prospect of reduced abortion access to turn out to the polls in November to elect state lawmakers who share their views on the issue.

“Women and girls have a right to an abortion in North Carolina up until 20 weeks if they're raped, if there's incest or for whatever reason they determine they need to,” Stein said in an interview with WRAL News. “It's their decision in consultation with their loved ones and their doctor. Politicians in Raleigh should not be making that decision for the women of North Carolina.”

The comments were made hours before a federal judge decided to allow to take effect a state law that bans abortion with exceptions for urgent medical emergencies after 20 weeks of pregnancy.

The ruling by U.S. District Judge William Osteen lifted an injunction that a court enacted last year because of constitutional concerns with the bill. Osteen ruled on Wednesday that the bill must be implemented in light of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in June to overturn Roe v. Wade. The high court’s ruling had left it up to states to set their own abortion laws, upending national abortion protections for women that had been in place since the 1973 Roe decision.

North Carolina’s top lawmakers, Republican Senate leader Phil Berger and House Speaker Tim Moore, have said they don’t plan to take up the issue of abortion this year.

Moore and Berger hope to gain veto-proof majorities in both chambers, which would enable them to pass stricter abortion measures over the objection of Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper, who has consistently vetoed proposals that would limit a woman’s access to the medical procedure.

NC attorney general won't move to enforce state's 20-week abortion ban

Stein said voters have an opportunity to change the law banning abortion after 20 weeks of pregnancy by electing Democrats in the November election.

“It's incredibly important for voters if they care about this issue to make sure that their elected representative will not strip them of their reproductive rights,” Stein told WRAL News. “I hope every North Carolinian asks candidates for office this November. Really, the right to abortion in North Carolina is on the ballot in November."

Stein, who is expected to run for governor in 2024, had previously said he wouldn’t participate in the case, freeing himself to speak in favor of abortion rights.

He's tasked with enforcing state laws, including ones he disagrees with. Stein said last month that his department wouldn’t “take action that would restrict women’s ability to make their own reproductive health care decisions.”

On Wednesday, Moore took aim at Stein’s refusal to defend the state law in court, echoing previous criticism by Republican lawmakers.

“I am encouraged that, although our attorney general has failed to do his duty, today we have a ruling that upholds the law,” Moore said in a statement.

Stein defended his decision, saying in an interview that his department already provided a sufficient defense of the law when it was argued in trial court.

“I could not keep my head down and not speak out on this issue,” Stein said. “So I recused myself at that point and told the office, ‘You do what you need to do to defend the law, but I’m going to speak out because what I see happening across this country is unacceptable and I do not want to see it in North Carolina.’”

In a statement, Gov. Roy Cooper said he disagreed with Osteen’s ruling and said he’d continue to work to make abortion accessible.

“Abortion past 20 weeks in pregnancy is exceptionally rare and happens because of a devastating health emergency or diagnosis,” Cooper wrote. “Denying women necessary medical care in extreme and threatening situations, even if rare, is fundamentally wrong, and we cannot let politicians mislead people about the real world implications of this harmful law."

Of the 629,898 abortions performed in 2019, almost 93% of them were at or before 13 weeks of pregnancy, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s latest count in November 2021. About 6% were performed between 14 and 20 weeks, and fewer than 1% were performed at or after 21 weeks of pregnancy.

Berger accused Stein and other Democrats of being out of step with the will of voters.

"Democrats' position on abortion can only be characterized as extreme,” Berger said in a statement. “Attorney General Stein’s political grandstanding has made one thing clear: He and his party want to allow abortion up to the moment of birth. That’s barbaric and out of touch with North Carolinians."

Stein responded in a statement to Berger's remarks, writing, “Women still have a legal right to an abortion in North Carolina under state law until 20 weeks. If people want that right to continue to exist, they have to elect legislators who share that view.”