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The Senate will vote today, Wednesday, on a national abortion rights bill which, if passed, would codify the right to abortion nationwide.
The bill is considered a protest gesture by Democrats against revelations that the Supreme Court is seemingly preparing to overturn Roe v. Wade, and it has been widely deemed as bound to fail.
The bill, known as the Women's Health Protection Act, follows the publication of a leaked draft opinion written by Justice Samuel Alito by Politico last week, which revealed that a majority of judges in the Supreme Court are ready to overrule Roe v. Wade, the legislation which has been protecting abortion rights in the U.S. in the past half century.
An earlier version of the bill was brought to the Senate in February, but failed to reach the 60-vote threshold necessary to proceed voting on the proposed legislation.
The bill presented to the Senate on Wednesday would need the support of at least 60 votes to be approved.
Republicans, who mostly oppose abortion, hold half of the 100 seats in the Senate, making reaching a majority on the bill very unlikely.
You can follow the vote today at 10 a.m. ET time here.
The bill has almost no chance of actually making it into legislation. However, the act still has a strong symbolic and political meaning.
"We will vote on Wednesday, and every American will see how every senator stands. They can't duck it anymore," said Democratic Senate Majority leader Chuck Schumer at a press conference in New York on Sunday.
Schumer added that senators will have to show "which side they're on" of this fiery debate on reproductive rights.
Democrats are hoping the bill will pressure voters to go to the polls in the midterm elections on November 8 and punish those Republicans senator who oppose abortion, assigning Democrats more seats in the Senate.
"We've got to win elections," said Democratic Senator Chris Murphy, as quoted by the Associated Press.
"The vote to protect abortion rights will shine like a floodlight on every member of this chamber," said Schumer on Tuesday.
What If the Bill Passed?
The chances that the bill will be passed in the Senate are almost zero, but it's worth knowing what the bill would establish if approved.
The bill aims at codifying the right to abortion into federal law, a level of legal protection for abortion rights that not even Roe v. Wade has achieved in 50 years. That means that not even the Supreme Court could then overturn Roe v. Wade.
The bill would also establish that health care providers have the right to provide an abortion to the patients seeking one, setting the limit to terminate a pregnancy at around 24 weeks. This would make legislation already in place in states like Texas completely invalid, as the bill would effectively ban any laws limiting access to abortion earlier than 24 weeks.
It would also end state legislation that limit the right to abortion to cases in which the mother's health or life is in danger.
Republican senators Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski, despite supporting abortion rights, say they will oppose the bill because it curtails the power of state legislation to protect religious freedom within their territories.
While the chances that this bill will be approved are razor thin, it's much more likely that the Supreme Court will follow through in overturning Roe v. Wade, with a final decision on the matter being expected in one or two months.
In that case, thirteen states will immediately ban abortion because of trigger laws and pre-existing bans preceding Roe v. Wade, while approximately 26 states in total are expected to make abortion illegal or severely limit access to it shortly after.
About the writer
Giulia Carbonaro is a Newsweek reporter based in London, U.K. Her focus is on the U.S. economy, housing market, property ... Read more